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Private companiesTracked

Ocean Aero

Gulfport, Mississippi · Founded 2012

Ocean Aero designs, builds and operates the Triton, a wind- and solar-powered autonomous vehicle that sails on the surface and dives below it to collect and transmit ocean data. It sells to defense and offshore energy customers.

Profile

What it builds and who buys it

  • ·The Triton can stay submerged for more than five days at two knots, and can sail for 30 days or more on wind and solar power.The Maritime Executive, Jan 20, 2026
  • ·Its vehicles have been deployed by the Department of Defense, the Department of Homeland Security, NOAA and offshore energy companies.Mississippi Development Authority (release via The Star-Herald), Sep 8, 2021
  • ·In September 2021 the company announced the move of its manufacturing and headquarters from San Diego to Gulfport, Mississippi.Mississippi Development Authority (release via The Star-Herald), Sep 8, 2021
  • ·Four Tritons, valued at about $13 million, were handed to the Philippine Navy on June 22, 2026 under a U.S.-funded security assistance program.The Defense News, Jun 23, 2026
  • ·James Fisher and Sons, a British offshore services and shipping company, took a strategic minority stake in January 2026 and said it would support Ocean Aero’s international expansion through its global customer network.The Maritime Executive, Jan 20, 2026
  • ·In September 2026 the company was investing about $4 million in an expansion in Gulfport, adding 20,000 square feet of production space and 45 jobs for the Triton Generation 4. Its chief executive said it built 50 Generation 3 units in about five years and plans 30 Generation 4 units in 12 months.WLOX, Sep 15, 2026

Founders and leadership

  • Ken ChildressCo-founder

    Worked on Harbor Wing Technologies’ autonomous sailboat, built under a Navy contract, from which the Triton’s predecessor descends.San Diego Business Journal, Jul 16, 2015

  • Mark OttCo-founder

    Worked on Harbor Wing Technologies’ autonomous sailboat project with Ken Childress.San Diego Business Journal, Jul 16, 2015

  • Vance (Bud) McClureCo-founder

    Named by the San Diego Business Journal as Ocean Aero’s third founder.San Diego Business Journal, Jul 16, 2015

Funding

Last valuation

No citable valuation

Last round or tender

Series D

Ocean News & Technology, Jan 20, 2026

James Fisher and Sons took a strategic minority stake as part of the round. No amount or valuation was announced.

Latest revenue figure

—

Valuation to revenue

—

Post-money valuation by round

Fewer than two dated figures on file to plot; the table carries what there is.

DateRoundRaisedPost-money
Jan 20, 2026Series DJames Fisher and Sons took a strategic minority stake as part of the round. No amount or valuation was announced.——
Sep 15, 2022Form D offeringNo announcement names this filing’s round. The filing records $4.0 million of equity sold to 2 investors from September 15, 2022, the whole offering.——
Aug 29, 2018Series BMulti-million-dollar strategic investments from Lockheed Martin Ventures, its second in the company, and Energy Innovation Capital. No amount or valuation was stated.——
Sep 15, 2017Strategic investmentLockheed Martin Ventures invested on undisclosed terms, joining Teledyne Technologies, an investor since 2014. No round name or valuation was stated.——

Revenue

No citable revenue figure on file.

Secondary venues

  • Caplightpublic page seen Oct 15, 2026

    No price on the public page.

    Listed under the slug oceanaero. No public MarketPrice. Historical pricing is behind a login.

  • Clarity (formerly Hiive)public page seen Oct 15, 2026

    No price on the public page.

    The Clarity Price, last match, bids and asks are blank. Its funding table lists a January 2026 Series D of $25M raised at a $110M post-money and $0.68 a share, with Energy Innovation Capital, James Fisher and Sons, Teledyne Marine and Lockheed Martin as investors; no announcement states these figures.

  • Nasdaq Private Marketpublic page seen Oct 15, 2026

    No price on the public page.

    The page shows no figure in its text or its title.

A venue is listed when its public page named the company on the date shown. A price is the figure that page showed, under the venue’s own name for it and dated as the venue dated it; it is a level the venue publishes, not a trade. Nothing is recorded from behind a login.

Reads

Tracked only. No read has been prepared for this company; the figures above are the record.

Sources

Researched Oct 15, 2026