BlueTIDE 2025

Northeast Tech Bridge Prize Challenge

Technology for Monitoring and Protecting Critical Undersea Infrastructure

BlueTIDE_Mission_Overeview_FINAL Distro A (002)

The Northeast Tech Bridge (NETB), based at the Naval Undersea Warfare Center Division Newport (NUWCNPT), working with Partnership Intermediary 401 Tech Bridge, the Office of Naval Research (ONR), and NavalX is running a multi-phase prize challenge to identify technology solutions to monitor and protect undersea critical infrastructure. This Prize Challenge is being conducted under 10 USC 4025 Prizes for advanced technology achievements.

For prize challenge criteria, submission requirements and demonstration information, refer to the Challenge.gov release linked below:

Challenge.Gov BlueTIDE NETB Prize Challenge

Applying for Event Series

The 2025 BlueTIDE series will include four preliminary qualifying land-based demonstration events and a culminating in-water experiment event on 28 August 2025 in Newport, RI.

Companies interested in participating in the series shall submit an application and up to five-page white paper describing their technology. Applications and white papers will be evaluated based on technology maturity and applicability, and qualifying companies will be invited to participate in an in-person or virtual (“hybrid”) demonstration of their technology. The US Navy reserves the right to eliminate companies from participation based on contracting and security issues.

Problem Statement

Increasing global reliance on undersea infrastructure has led to increasing interest in ensuring its safety and integrity. NETB, NUWCNPT, NavalX, and ONR are interested in technology solutions that enable remote and autonomous monitoring, inspection, threat identification, analysis, event notification, and response mobilization

Technology Focus Areas:

For the 2025 BlueTIDE event series, NUWCNPT SMEs identified operational objectives related to monitoring and protecting undersea critical infrastructure, developed an Operational View Level One (OV-1) graphic to depict the scenario(s) of interest, and decomposed the scenario(s) to specific technology focus areas:

1. Autonomous Undersea and Surface Vehicles (AUV and ASV)
  - Executes autonomous and swarm-enabled undersea and surface operations for reconnaissance, intervention, and perimeter security.
  - Performs fine-motor manipulation capabilities for intervention-capable AUVs to retrieve and secure objects.
  - Delivers real-time AI-assisted target recognition and decision-making for both AUV and ASV fleets.
1. Mobile and Stationary Sensors
  - Provides high-resolution underwater and surface monitoring, including anomaly detection near critical infrastructure.
  - Supports multi-domain integration, fusing data from surface and subsurface vessels and sensors.
  - Includes stationary sensor arrays capable of detecting underwater anomalies and tracking potential threats.
1. Resilient Undersea and Cross-domain Communications
  - Ensures persistent and secure data transmission between undersea, surface, and command-and-control assets.
  - Maintains resilient and secure communications for autonomous swarm operations, optimizes for varying ranges, and ensures data feeds through adaptive failover systems, encrypted communications, and autonomous self-healing network capabilities.
  - Enables adaptive networking for multi-domain operations, including undersea, surface, and shore-based command centers.
1. High Resolution Undersea Imaging
  - Provides detailed, real-time seabed imaging to support anomaly detection and subsea infrastructure monitoring.
  - Integrates AI-driven data analysis for rapid object classification and mapping.
  - Supports operations in shallow water environments with precision navigation and mapping capabilities.

Application Requirements:

Participants will deliver the items below by 11:59 PM Eastern Time on 14 April 2025, via the designated process on Challenge.gov. If you are applying for more than one technology focus area a separate submission is required.

Completed application (see below)
White paper
- Maximum of five pages
- Description of technology, maturity, and relevance to mission

Applications will be evaluated based on technology and company maturity, relevance, and ability to participate in the event series.

NETB Prize Challenge Application

Name(Required)

First Last

Company(Required)

Email(Required)

Address(Required)

Street Address Address Line 2 City State / Province / Region ZIP / Postal Code Country

Phone(Required)

Website(Required)

CAGE Code or Unique Entity ID

If you are not yet registered on sam.gov, please do so at your earliest opportunity.

NAICS Code

Country where your company is headquartered.(Required)

Is your company foreign owned, controlled or influenced (FOCI)? If so, please identify the country.

Technology Focus Areas - If you are applying for more than one technology focus area a separate submission is required.(Required)

Provide a brief overview of your company. (250 words maximum)(Required)

Provide a detailed overview of your technology. (500 maximum)(Required)

Provide your Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 1-9.(Required)

Please refer to the appendix on this page, for reference.

TRL Guide

Guide

Provide a summary about your team. (250 words maximum)(Required)

Include any additional relevant information related to; demonstrations, awards, partnerships/collaborations, or funding raised.

Confirm your availability if selected to present at the hybrid demonstration associated with the technology focus area that you are applying, as outlined in the challenge document.

Yes, you will be available

No, you will not

Confirm you and your team’s availability to participate in-person if selected at 2025 BlueTIDE on 28 August 2025, in Newport, RI.

Yes, we can participate in-person

No, we would not be able to be in-person

White Paper Uploads

Drop files here or

Accepted file types: doc, pdf, Max. file size: 256 MB, Max. files: 5.

A confirmation text box will appear on-screen upon "submit". An email will be sent from info@401techbridge.org confirming receipt.

Comments

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Frequently Asked Questions

Virtual Information Session

A virtual information session will be held on Thursday, March 20th at 3PM Eastern Time. A recording of the information session will be posted here.

Register to attend the BlueTIDE NETB Information Session

Hybrid Demonstration Event Dates

29 April 2025: Autonomous Undersea and Surface Vehicles (AUV and ASV)
6 May 2025: Mobile and Stationary Sensors
13 May 2025: Resilient Undersea and Cross-Domain Communications
20 May 2025: High Resolution Undersea Imaging

BlueTIDE Mission Overview - Critical Infrastructure Monitoring and Protection

Critical Infrastructure Monitoring and Protection

A Maritime Operating Center (MOC) is located at a strategic port where critical power and data cables come ashore. The undersea monitoring network has picked up an anomaly near the critical power and data cables—an object roughly the size of a small autonomous undersea vehicle (AUV), but stationary.

A resilient comms link sends a message to the MOC, which orders deployment of a collaborative swarm of AUVs for closer inspection. As the AUVs approach the anomaly, a high-resolution underwater camera aboard the lead AUV engages, sending a live feed to the MOC.

In the MOC, AI-assisted target recognition rapidly analyzes the object’s structure. The command and control system fuse all incoming data from the seabed mapping drones, surface vessels, and subsurface sensors. The anomaly was not just a lone object—it was one of three devices placed along the cable route.

The MOC orders deployment of an intervention-capable undersea vehicle with fine-motor manipulators to investigate further. This vehicle maneuvers in to safely secure the object in a containment unit and transports it to shore for later analysis.

Above the waterline, a network of autonomous surface vehicles (ASV) maintains a perimeter, monitoring for any surface threats. As the deep-sea teams work, the surface fleet’s sensors detect a new contact—an unidentified USV moving toward the operation zone.

Two swarm-enabled patrol USVs break formation and move toward the intruder, emitting deterrent signals. The unknown vessel hesitates, then veers away.

Technology Bins:

Autonomous, uncrewed undersea vehicles (AUV) and surface vehicles (ASV)
- We are looking for technology that:
  - Executes autonomous and swarm-enabled undersea and surface operations for reconnaissance, intervention, and perimeter security.
  - Performs fine-motor manipulation capabilities for intervention-capable AUVs to retrieve and secure objects.
  - Delivers real-time AI-assisted target recognition and decision-making for both AUV and ASV fleets.

Mobile and stationary sensors
- We are looking for technology that:
  - Provides high-resolution underwater and surface monitoring, including anomaly detection near critical infrastructure.
  - Supports multi-domain integration, fusing data from surface and subsurface vessels and sensors.
  - Includes stationary sensor arrays capable of detecting underwater anomalies and tracking potential threats.

Resilient Undersea and Cross-domain Communications
- We are looking for technology that:
  - Ensures persistent and secure data transmission between undersea, surface, and command-and-control assets.
  - Maintains resilient and secure communications for autonomous swarm operations, optimizes for varying ranges, and ensures data feeds through adaptive failover systems, encrypted communications, and autonomous self-healing network capabilities.
  - Enables adaptive networking for multi-domain operations, including undersea, surface, and shore-based command centers.

High resolution undersea imaging
- We are looking for technology that:
  - Provides detailed, real-time seabed imaging to support anomaly detection and subsea infrastructure monitoring.
  - Integrates AI-driven data analysis for rapid object classification and mapping.
  - Supports operations in shallow water environments with precision navigation and mapping capabilities.

Benefits of Participating

Benefits of Participating

$7,500 will be awarded to each semifinalist selected from the qualifying hybrid demonstration events;
Total of $200,000 will be awarded to the top finalists from the August experimentation event;
Participants will enjoy exposure to leaders across US Navy Systems Commands, Warfare Centers, and Program Offices, and other branches of the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) responsible for the development and deployment of technology solutions.
Participants will have opportunities to learn from and collaborate with other industry, government, academic leaders and Partners in this space.
Participants will have the potential for follow-on opportunities such as Other Transaction Agreements (OTAs), Cooperative Research and Development Agreements (CRADAs), Commercial Solutions Offerings (CSO), Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR), and others.

2025 BlueTIDE Date

2025 BlueTIDE Demonstration, 28 August 2025, Newport, RI

NETB Prize Challenge Final Award

The final event of the BlueTIDE event series will be held on 28 August 2025 in Newport, RI, at NUWCNPT and an additional non-federal government venue on Narragansett Bay. Details will be provided regarding the format of the final event as part of the notification to selected semi-finalists.

At the completion of the 28 August 2025 experiment, participants will be evaluated quantitatively based on technology performance relative to the government-defined mission and experiment objectives, and up to four awardees will be selected to receive a total of $200,000 in prize money. Details of the evaluation process will be provided prior to the 28 August 2025 experiment event.