HII, C3 AI forge artificial intelligence partnership to support US Navy shipbuilding

HII, America’s largest military shipbuilder, and C3 AI, the Enterprise AI application software company, have announced a strategic partnership to expand digital technologies and apply artificial intelligence (AI) to accelerate shipbuilding throughput at HII’s Newport News Shipbuilding and Ingalls Shipbuilding divisions.

“Increasing shipbuilding throughput is a critical priority for HII and the U.S. Navy,” says HII CEO Chris Kastner. “We’re proud to partner with C3 AI to leverage data and digital capabilities like artificial intelligence in the urgent work of delivering ships to the U.S. Navy.”

“C3 AI is proud to team with HII to ensure its vision in maintaining the nation’s maritime industrial dominance through the adoption of next-generation shipbuilding technologies. This collaboration underscores our growing role as a strategic provider to the U.S. government and defense sector,” says Thomas M. Siebel, chairman and CEO, C3 AI. “By deploying Enterprise AI across planning, operations, and the supply chain, we are powering a modern, intelligent infrastructure to ensure America’s edge in naval readiness.”

HII is broadening an existing partnership with C3 AI to integrate AI solutions across its shipbuilding operations, including in the areas of planning, operations, supply chain and labor allocation. These efforts are expected to accelerate production and support the U.S. Navy’s fleet readiness needs. The collaboration will also include opportunities in uncrewed vehicle production and sustainment.

The collaboration builds on a six-month initial Enterprise AI production deployment program conducted at Ingalls Shipbuilding, where shipbuilding teams leveraged complex algorithms to adjust and optimize work schedules. The initial deployment of the C3 AI application — powered by the C3 Agentic AI Platform — demonstrated significant improvements in schedule performance, an effort which will now be scaled across HII shipyards.

Initial efforts will focus on leveraging AI to enhance planning and scheduling at HII’s two shipbuilding divisions: Ingalls Shipbuilding, which builds amphibious ships and destroyers for the U.S. Navy; and Newport News Shipbuilding, which constructs U.S. nuclear-powered aircraft carriers and nuclear-powered submarines for the U.S. Navy.

This alliance marks a significant milestone in the digitization of America’s defense industrial base and reflects the commitment of both companies to strengthening U.S. naval capabilities through innovation.