Kristina Roberts
In the world of oceans and submarines, a quiet revolution is taking place. A new American company, Spear AI, is trying something very different and exciting — using artificial intelligence (AI) to help the U.S. Navy better understand sounds picked up by submarines deep underwater. This company, started by two men who once served in the U.S. Navy, has just received its first major funding to grow and build on this important idea.
Spear AI is based in Washington, and its mission is not only unique but also very important for the safety and security of the country. The oceans are full of sounds, from natural ones like whales singing to strange ones that might come from unknown submarines or ships. Submarines use special equipment to listen to these sounds, but it’s not easy to figure out what each sound means. This is where AI comes in — it can help tell the difference between something harmless like a rainstorm and something dangerous like an enemy ship.
One of the founders of Spear AI is John McGunnigle, who used to be in charge of the USS New Hampshire, a powerful nuclear submarine in the U.S. Navy. After retiring from his military job, he decided to use what he learned during his service to solve real-world problems. His partner, Michael Hunter, was also part of the military. He worked as an analyst and helped the Navy SEALs and other special teams. Together, they knew the power of data and how difficult it is to make sense of the noises picked up underwater. That’s why they came up with the idea of building a company that uses AI to understand these underwater sounds in a smarter and faster way.
Most AI systems today are trained using neatly organized and labeled information, like pictures or written words. This kind of training has been going on for years. For example, companies like Scale AI have spent a lot of time collecting and organizing such data. But underwater sound data is very different. It’s messy, raw, and hard to label. No one knows for sure what all those underwater noises mean. That makes it very difficult to teach an AI system what to look for. Spear AI is trying to fix this problem.
To do this, the company has created a special platform that includes both hardware and software. They build sensors that can be attached to floating buoys or ships. These sensors pick up sounds from the water and send them back to computers. Then, using Spear AI’s software tools, the sounds can be sorted, labeled, and prepared for the AI to study. This makes it easier for the computer to learn what is what — whether it’s a whale, a storm, or another submarine.
This month, the U.S. Navy gave Spear AI a $6 million contract to help with this work. The Navy wants to use Spear AI’s tools to organize its huge collection of underwater sounds so it can train its own AI systems better. With this new funding, Spear AI now has the support it needs to expand its team and continue building better tools for the future.
“Most AI today works with text or images, but acoustic data is a whole different story,” explained one of the founders. He said that it’s not easy to figure out what a strange noise in the ocean really means unless you’ve trained the AI using a lot of real-world examples. That’s what Spear AI is trying to make possible.
The company’s goal is to help submarine crews understand what’s going on around them more clearly and quickly. Imagine being deep underwater with nothing but sound to guide you. It’s dark, and you can’t see much. Every noise matters. That’s why knowing if a sound is just a whale or a hidden enemy submarine could make a big difference in keeping people safe.
Spear AI’s team brings not only technical knowledge but also personal experience from the field. Both founders know what it’s like to work in high-pressure situations where clear information can save lives. Their work now reflects that same level of dedication, only this time with machines instead of missions.
While Spear AI is still a new company, its ideas are already being noticed. Using AI for military and defense tasks is not new, but applying it to submarine data in such a detailed and careful way is definitely something special. The fact that the Navy is interested shows just how much potential this project has.
In the future, as technology grows, companies like Spear AI could play an even bigger role in helping the military. The underwater world is mysterious and sometimes dangerous. With better tools, submarine crews will have more confidence in their decisions. They’ll know when to act and when to stay calm. And all of that might start with a simple sound that a machine helps them understand.
For now, Spear AI is focused on building its systems and making sure its tools are as accurate and useful as possible. The company hopes to add more team members, build more sensors, and improve its software so that it can handle even more data. If everything goes well, this small company started by two Navy veterans might one day help change how the whole Navy listens to the ocean.
In the end, this story is not just about machines or money. It’s about people — people who served their country, saw a challenge, and decided to do something about it. It’s about using smart ideas to solve real problems. And most of all, it’s about making the world a little safer, one sound at a time.
