A British firm has unveiled a fully automatic landing and takeoff platform designed to support reliable VTOL drone operations in rough maritime conditions.

WaiV Robotics’ system allows uncrewed aerial vehicles to launch and recover from vessels as small as 10 m long without requiring modifications to the drone’s hardware or software.

The company said its patent-pending catch-lock-release mechanism, combined with AI-powered predictive algorithms, enables precise drone recovery even while ships are moving through high sea states on the open ocean.

Recently, researchers in Germany developed a chain-launching drone interceptor that disables UAVs by tangling their spinning rotors midair.

Sea landing AI

The automated maritime drone landing and takeoff platform is designed to support VTOL UAV operations in challenging ocean environments.

The system combines a patent-pending catch-lock-release mechanism with AI-based predictive software to enable drones to land safely on moving vessels in rough sea conditions. The platform currently supports drones weighing up to 33 pounds (15 kilograms), while future versions are planned for smaller aircraft around 6.6 pounds (3 kilograms) and larger UAVs weighing between 220 pounds and 661 pounds (100 kilograms to 300 kilograms), reports The Robot Repot (TRR).

Traditional gentle drone landings are not well-suited for ships in motion because sudden vessel movement can destabilize the aircraft during contact. However, harder landings may create rebound effects that cause drones to bounce or lose control. To address this, WaiV developed a locking system that secures the drone immediately after landing. Once the UAV touches down, the platform locks it in place to prevent movement from rolling waves or vessel motion. The system can then remotely release the lock when the drone is ready to take off again.

The landing solution also uses a gyro-stabilized platform that helps maintain a level surface during recovery and launch operations. The company designed the technology to operate without modifying the drone itself. No additional hardware or software needs to be installed on the UAV, allowing operators to preserve the drone’s battery efficiency, payload capability, and cybersecurity protections, reports TRR.

Instead of integrating directly into onboard drone systems, WaiV’s platform works through the drone’s remote-control interface. Sensors mounted on the vessel, including radar and electro-optical tracking systems, monitor the UAV’s position relative to the landing platform. The software then guides the aircraft in the same way a pilot would operate the drone using manual controls. Human operators can transfer control to the automated system during landing or takeoff while still retaining the ability to interrupt operations if necessary.

Smart maritime UAVs

WaiV has raised €6.4 million ($7.5 million) in Seed funding to launch its automated maritime VTOL drone landing platform, joining a broader 2026 wave of European investment in robotics, autonomous systems, maritime technology, drone software, and defense-related infrastructure startups, according to EU-Startups.

WaiV’s platform is designed to support multiple VTOL drone configurations, including multicopters, helicopters, and fixed-wing UAVs from different manufacturers.

AI-driven guidance software helps drones adapt to constantly changing sea conditions during landing and launch operations. To develop the technology, the company relied heavily on simulation-based testing using different ship types, sea states, drone weights, and environmental conditions. Real-world maritime testing was also conducted to validate system performance and improve accuracy.

WaiV claims the platform could support a broad range of maritime applications across commercial, government, and defense sectors. Potential use cases include offshore infrastructure inspections, energy operations near oil rigs and wind farms, fishing support missions, search-and-rescue work, coast guard activities, scientific ocean research, port authority operations, and ship-to-ship parcel delivery.

“Without a dependable way to launch and recover at sea, large-scale deployment simply doesn’t work. Our goal is to remove that constraint and make drone operations viable from virtually any vessel,” said Johnny Carni, Founder and CEO of WaiV Robotics, as reported by EU-Startups.

The company is also exploring partnerships with drone manufacturers as demand grows for integrated maritime UAV packages combining drones with automated landing systems.