Anduril today officially opened a state-of-the-art Ghost Shark manufacturing facility in Sydney, Australia. The California-based defense technology company turned the lights on just seven weeks after receiving a significant A$1.7 billion (USD$1.1 billion) investment from the Royal Australian Navy to deliver a fleet of these large autonomous underwater vehicles over the next five years. The feat coincided with the first Ghost Shark Extra Large Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (XL-AUV) rolling off the line ahead of schedule.
The new 7,400 m² facility is capable of manufacturing the Ghost Shark, as well as its commercial baseline, the Dive-XL, at scale. If the Australian government approves, the vessels could soon be available for export to allies and global partners.
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The Ghost Shark's development was unique. Rather than relying on traditional defense acquisition, the Navy co-developed and co-funded Ghost Shark with Anduril, committing significant financial capital to the program's success.
The Navy embedded personnel into Anduril's operations and returned the favor as part of a $140 million (Australian dollars) co-development contract to deliver three Ghost Sharks. The company says it delivered all three ahead of schedule and on budget. Anduril employees even worked out of the naval bases alongside navy personnel, with shared access and time on base enabling joint testing and capability development.
According to Anduril, the Australian Navy expects the Ghost Shark to mark the beginning of a new era of sea prowess through maritime autonomy. The company says Australia has faced a persistent and threatening presence of Chinese naval assets in its home waters for years. AUVs can directly address this challenge through coastal defense patrols and area-wide domain awareness powered by artificial intelligence.
Anduril announced a $60 million investment in the new plant in September. The factory is a combination of advanced robotic manufacturing, AI-driven logistics and a custom test tank for in-water verification of buoyancy, electrical systems and safety before sea trials. Now that the first Ghost Shark has come off the line, it will be prepped for sea testing ahead of planned delivery in January 2026—that's pretty remarkable considering it went from prototype to fleet in less than three years.
Anduril took on a bit of risk in developing Ghost Shark. In February 2022, months before securing any formal engagement with government partners, Anduril acquired Boston-based AUV startup Dive Technologies.
The program has started with low-rate initial production with plans to move to full-scale production in 2026. Parts and materials for the Ghost Shark are sourced from more than 40 small and mid-sized local suppliers, and more than 150 high-skilled jobs were created to make it happen.
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