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Bob Pudney of Black Sea Technologies on the Future of Naval Warfare | 13th & Park

Bob Pudney, President of Black Sea Technologies, joins 13th and Park to discuss how autonomous and unmanned surface vessels are redefining naval power. A Naval Academy graduate and 21-year veteran of surface warfare and naval special operations, Pudney brings firsthand perspective to one of the most significant shifts in military technology in generations. From the Black Sea to the Strait of Hormuz, unmanned boats are no longer experimental. They are operational. Pudney explains how Black Sea Technologies, headquartered at a former World War II shipyard in Baltimore's Curtis Bay, has spent three decades developing autonomous maritime systems for DARPA and the Office of Naval Research. The company built hundreds of the Navy's first autonomous vessel, the Global Autonomous Reconnaissance Craft (GARC), and recently unveiled two new platforms, Chaser and Comet, named after Baltimore privateer vessels from the War of 1812. Comet, a 43-foot armed unmanned surface vessel capable of carrying weapon systems and counter-drone missiles, represents exactly the kind of rapid, scalable innovation the Navy is demanding. The conversation covers contested logistics in the Indo-Pacific, the new Night Train platform designed to deliver cargo to troops in denied areas, and the recent headline moment when an unmanned vessel rescued two downed Apache helicopter crew members in waters near Oman. Pudney frames that rescue as proof of concept and a preview of the thousands of untold stories yet to come once warfighters have the right tools in hand. Pudney also reflects on the culture at Black Sea Technologies, a workforce he describes as a Star Wars bar of software engineers, blue-collar shipbuilders, and roughly 50 former military operators who train alongside sailors in the field. His guiding philosophy: deliver outcomes, not just products. And do it on time, on budget, and at scale. Chapters 0:00 Intro 1:28 How Fast Is Naval Warfare Changing? 2:23 Historical Inflection Points in Naval Power 3:30 Mine Hunting and Unmanned Operations 4:18 What Black Sea Technologies Does 5:46 Chaser and Comet Unveiled 7:21 Replicability and Open Architecture 8:05 Training Sailors on Autonomous Systems 8:52 Building 30 Boats a Month in Baltimore 10:03 The Curtis Bay Shipyard Legacy 10:51 The Workforce Behind the Vessels 11:31 21 Years in the Navy, Now Building Its Future 13:02 Night Train: Contested Logistics Platform 14:27 The Apache Rescue: Proof of Concept 15:25 Rethinking Naval Power and Fleet Size 16:30 Public Reaction to Autonomous Boats 16:56 The Risk of Falling Behind 18:26 Speed of the Current Administration 19:18 Service After Service 20:12 Closing Remarks Follow Us! X: https://x.com/13thandPark IG: https://www.instagram.com/13th_and_park/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/13thandpark TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@13th_and_park Follow Bob Pudney LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bob-pudney-894429b9/ Website: https://www.blacksea.tech #blackseatechnologies #unmannednavalsystems #maritimewarfare #navaldefense #autonomousvessels #ussnavy #defensetechnology #nationalsecurity #baltimoredefense #navaldrones #indopacific #contestedlogistics #militaryinnovation #navytech #13thandpark #politicalpodcast #defenseindustry #futureof warfare