Ukraine has introduced a new AI-equipped sea drone, “Sea Baby,” capable of targeting Russian assets anywhere in the Black Sea. The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) revealed the upgraded drone during a secure demonstration, boasting an extended range of 1,500 kilometers (930 miles) and a payload capacity of 2,000 kilograms (about 4,400 pounds).
The Sea Baby is a significant advancement in unmanned naval warfare, with features including AI-assisted friend-or-foe targeting, the ability to deploy aerial drones, and a multilayered self-destruct system to prevent capture. Some variants of the drone now include rocket launchers and stabilized machine-gun turrets.
According to Brig. Gen. Ivan Lukashevych, the Sea Baby program has reshaped the naval conflict in the region. Ukraine has successfully used these drones to strike 11 Russian naval vessels, including frigates and missile carriers, pushing the Russian Navy to relocate from Sevastopol in Crimea to Novorossiysk.
Ukrainian sea drones have also played a central role in attacks on the Crimean Bridge, targeting critical infrastructure and limiting Russia’s military logistics. The Sea Baby is remotely operated from mobile command vans, and its crews are trained for precision and cohesion.
The program is coordinated with Ukraine’s political and military leadership and partially funded through public donations. Lukashevych emphasized that the evolution from one-time-use strike boats to multipurpose, reusable drones represents a major leap in asymmetric warfare. “We can show Ukrainians the most effective use of the money they have donated to us,” he said.
