Navy boosts AI inspection contract to $300 million to keep warships out of repair yards

The Navy has raised the maximum value of a contract for robotic ship inspections from $71 million to $300 million. Gecko’s Komodo robotic inspection system, developed for the Navy, can detect corrosion and measure material thickness beneath nonskid deck coatings without removing them, according to the company. (Gecko Robotics) The Navy has raised the maximum value of a contract for robotic ship inspections from $71 million to $300 million, expanding the use of artificial intelligence to detect structural damage before vessels enter maintenance. Pittsburgh-based Gecko Robotics announced Tuesday that the Navy and General Services Administration increased the contract ceiling six months after its initial award. The decision allows the Navy to order more inspections without establishing a new contract each time, Gecko spokesman Steve Bourner told Stars and Stripes by email late Tuesday.

The original agreement included a roughly $54 million order to inspect 18 Pacific Fleet Ships. The higher ceiling accommodates growing demand in the Pacific and possible expansion to other fleets, Bourner said. To illustrate the potential savings, he described two Arleigh Burke-class destroyers that entered maintenance around the same time with similar structural problems. One destroyer, inspected using conventional methods, required weeks to collect about 3,000 data points. Engineers then authorized a $7.9 million flight deck replacement, extending maintenance by several months, Bourner said. On the other