You’ve seen the Bolt-M drone and autonomous Barracuda cruise missiles, now check out what Palmer Luckey’s Anduril Industries is cooking up next: Copperhead. This is a family of high-speed Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs), and the Copperhead-M is the munition variant, a torpedo-like capability designed for autonomous deployment, which is pretty groundbreaking.
The Copperhead-M is built to be mass-producible and cost-effective, unlike traditional torpedoes like the Mk 48 or Mk 54, which can cost millions each. It comes in two models—Copperhead-100M (100 lbs, ~9 ft long) and Copperhead-500M (500 lbs, ~13.5 ft)—and can be launched from Anduril’s Dive-LD or Dive-XL AUVs. This setup allows for scalable, autonomous firepower, letting uncrewed systems handle high-risk missions while keeping manned assets safe.
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As mentioned before, the Copperhead family includes reusable, software-driven autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) built for autonomous delivery. They use Anduril’s Lattice AI software to do things like spotting targets based on rules set by the operator. They’re intended to counter modern maritime threats, including enemy uncrewed underwater vehicles (UUVs) and surface vessels, while supporting commercial tasks like search and rescue or environmental monitoring.
Both variants of the Copperhead family—the baseline Copperhead (for non-combat missions) and the Copperhead-M (munition variant)—are designed to exceed speeds of 30 knots (34 mph). This is true for both sizes in each type: the Copperhead-100/Copperhead-100M and the Copperhead-500/Copperhead-500M. The high speed is a key feature, enabling rapid response for tasks like intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance, or engaging maritime targets autonomously
Anduril has been testing the Copperhead AUVs and plans to start making them later in 2025. Besides working underwater, the Copperhead-M could also be launched from the air by cargo planes or big drones, giving it more ways to be used.
With the addition of Copperhead, Anduril is building a family of intelligent, autonomous maritime systems that work together to deliver unmatched situational awareness, precision engagement, and scalable maritime dominance. By integrating autonomous capabilities across subsea, surface, and air domains, Anduril is enabling operators to maintain full control of the battlespace, ensuring superiority in any maritime environment,” said the company.
[Source]
