Exclusive: HavocAI adds Seahound to its drone-boat roster

The intrigue: Havoc is one of the youngest on the scene. It was co-founded last year by Paul Lwin, a Myanmar refugee and former EA-6B weapons system officer. (Lwin also flight tested the EA-18G.)

Zoom in: The vessel, Seahound, is expected to have a 1,000-nautical-mile range and a 1,000-pound payload capacity.

• It can run on the same software as Havoc's existing 14-foot craft, Rampage.

What they're saying: "While revitalizing traditional shipbuilding remains critically important, equally urgent is the parallel development of smaller, faster, attritable unmanned maritime vessels," Lwin told Axios.

• "The extraordinary success of unmanned maritime operations in Ukraine's Black Sea demonstrates their pivotal role in the future of naval combat."

Yes, but: Seeing is believing. At-sea trials will prove or disprove Seahound's utility.

• Other players in the increasingly competitive unmanned surface vessel space include Leidos, Textron Systems, Saildrone and Saronic.

Follow the money: Havoc last year raised $11 million. The early investors included Scout Ventures, Trousdale Ventures and Outlander VC.

What we're watching: How Havoc stands out from the crowd — and how its work with the Navy and Army proceeds.

• The company recently participated in Project Convergence, a monthslong weapons-and-networking experiment.

Go deeper: Defense firms unveil new weapons at Sea-Air-Space naval conference