Seasats

About Seasats

Seasats is a San Diego-based company founded in October 2020 by brothers Mike and Dan Flanigan, along with Dylan Rodriguez and Max Kramers. The company specializes in the manufacturing and operation of long-endurance autonomous surface vehicles (ASVs) for defense, commercial, and scientific missions. The founders' journey began with a childhood project in Rhode Island to build a solar-powered autonomous boat named Scout, which later inspired the formation of Seasats. CEO Mike Flanigan holds a degree in Mechanical Engineering with a minor in Aeronautical Engineering and a Master of Science in computer science. The company's business model centers on providing cost-effective, reliable, and easily deployable unmanned systems that extend maritime reach and enhance situational awareness. Revenue is generated through the sale of its vessels and potentially through data-as-a-service models. Its client base includes the U.S. Navy, U.S. Marine Corps, research universities, and commercial enterprises. Seasats has secured over $50.1 million in total funding from investors including Konvoy Ventures, Shield Capital, and L3Harris, and has been awarded over $100 million in U.S. government contracts. Seasats' flagship product is the Lightfish, a solar-powered ASV designed for persistence and portability. The Lightfish weighs 305 lbs, can be deployed by one or two people from a pickup truck, and has an endurance of up to six months, capable of traveling 8,000 nautical miles. It is designed to operate in rough seas and can be fitted with a modular payload of up to 66 lbs for various missions, including intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance (ISR), environmental monitoring, and subsea mapping. The vessel has successfully completed significant missions, including trans-Pacific and trans-Atlantic crossings and the first autonomous transit of the Taiwan Strait, where it tracked and identified Chinese warships. The company also produces the Quickfish, a high-speed interceptor ASV, and is developing the Heavyfish, a larger vessel with a 1,000 lbs payload capacity, planned for a 2026 launch.