EUROATLAS and Rheinmetall Join Forces to Embed GREYSHARK™ AUVs into Future European Coastal Defence Systems

In a major boost to European maritime defence, Germany’s EUROATLAS and defence giant Rheinmetall have announced a new strategic partnership to integrate the GREYSHARK™ autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) into Rheinmetall’s Battlesuite™, a digital backbone system for managing advanced multi-domain coastal operations. This move is set to transform how Europe secures its coastal and undersea environments, especially in the face of growing maritime threats.

The announcement signals a significant shift in how autonomous technologies will be applied to coastal defence, merging underwater domain awareness with artificial intelligence (AI)-powered command and control systems.

What Is GREYSHARK™ and Why It Matters

The GREYSHARK™ AUV is an advanced autonomous underwater vehicle developed by EUROATLAS and powered by a modular AI software stack, co-developed with EvoLogics. What makes GREYSHARK™ stand out is its ability to operate long-range and high-endurance missions, which are critical for roles like monitoring undersea cables, detecting underwater threats, and conducting environmental surveillance.

The AUV is equipped with a sophisticated sensor suite of 17 integrated sensors, continuously collecting mission-critical data. This enables GREYSHARK™ to carry out real-time mapping, anomaly detection, and intelligent decision-making underwater—tasks that were previously slow or manpower-intensive.

Its endurance, sensor fusion, and rapid deployment capabilities make it a valuable asset not just for the military, but also for civilian infrastructure protection.

Rheinmetall Battlesuite™: The Digital Backbone

Rheinmetall’s Battlesuite™ is an AI-enabled, modular digital platform designed to integrate and manage multi-domain defence operations across land, sea, air, and cyber. By embedding GREYSHARK™ into this system, Rheinmetall is building a truly interconnected coastal defence infrastructure—capable of coordinating sensors, platforms, and response systems in real-time.

GREYSHARK™ will now become a core enabler in this digital architecture, improving underwater situational awareness and interoperability with broader defence networks. Its inclusion supports Rheinmetall’s mission to deliver flexible, scalable and sovereign European defence solutions.

Key Areas of Collaboration

Under this partnership, Rheinmetall and EUROATLAS will jointly:

• Integrate GREYSHARK™ AUVs into Rheinmetall’s global coastal protection architecture, including sensor networks, C2 (command and control) systems, and support platforms.

• Co-develop mission-specific variants of GREYSHARK™ to suit diverse operational needs, with a focus on customization and future upgrades.

• Support sovereign European supply chains, ensuring secure manufacturing, deployment, and recovery of AUVs across NATO-aligned coastlines.

The integration is expected to play a vital role in reinforcing coastal defence capabilities of NATO member states and partner nations, while maintaining digital sovereignty and avoiding over-dependence on any single technology provider.

Upgrades and Innovation Roadmap

Beyond integration, the two companies are setting up a joint innovation roadmap focused on:

• Autonomy and AI in undersea operations

• Sensor fusion for real-time underwater intelligence

• Long-endurance operational capabilities

• Seamless interoperability with future unmanned systems

These upgrades aim to make GREYSHARK™ not just a tool for current missions, but a platform for future underwater warfare, surveillance, and infrastructure security.

What the Leaders Said

Eugen Ciemnyjewski, CEO of EUROATLAS, emphasized the importance of this step:

“As a force multiplier for maritime operations, GREYSHARK™ combines autonomy, interoperability, and rapid deployment. With scalable manufacturing, we’re ready to meet growing strategic demand across NATO.”

A spokesperson for Rheinmetall added:

“GREYSHARK™ is a disruptive system in our Battlesuite™ ecosystem. We're proud to support its evolution for multi-domain operations in a changing threat environment.”

The Bigger Picture

This partnership isn’t just about integrating an underwater robot—it reflects a strategic commitment to European defence autonomy. As maritime borders become more contested and critical infrastructure increasingly vulnerable, technologies like GREYSHARK™ will be key to deterring hybrid threats and securing undersea assets.

By embedding GREYSHARK™ into Rheinmetall’s digital coastal ecosystem, Europe is taking a big leap toward next-gen coastal security, sovereign manufacturing, and resilient defence partnerships.

GREYSHARK™ Specifications (at a glance):

• 17 integrated sensors for underwater data collection

• Long-endurance mission capability

• AI-driven navigation and decision-making

• Modular AI software stack (developed with EvoLogics)

• Designed for coastal defence, undersea cable monitoring, and multi-domain integration

• Rapid deployment and recovery ready

• Built to support custom variants for specific mission needs

With GREYSHARK™ now becoming part of the European defence toolkit, coastal security is entering a new era—one where autonomous systems, AI, and human-machine teaming are at the forefront of securing the waters.