Vatn Systems Wins Defense Innovation Unit's Mine Countermeasure Modernization Prize Challenge

As DIU searches for modular, communications-resilient technology to conduct unmanned naval mine countermeasures, Vatn Systems' SIGURD system evaluated under operational conditions.

BRISTOL, R.I., Oct. 1, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Vatn Systems, a leading defense technology company building autonomous underwater vehicles for the U.S. military, allied nations, and commercial customers, today announced it is a winner of the Department of War Innovation Unit's (DIU) Mine Counter Measure Modernization Prize Challenge. Vatn's SIGURD system, built on the company's Skelmir S6 platform, successfully competed in the Near Surface and Volume Mine Engage Test and Evaluation segment, earning recognition as one of the top-performing solutions.

"Mine countermeasures has long been an underfunded and technically demanding mission in naval warfare, and DIU built this challenge to see which systems could perform under real mission conditions," said Nelson Mills, co-founder and CEO of Vatn Systems.  "During DIU's evaluation, SIGURD autonomously detected, reacquired and neutralized mine threats the way operators would encounter them in the field. As the need for this capability grows more urgent, this win helps us accelerate our mission of delivering undersea superiority at scale."

DIU opened the MCM Modernization Prize Challenge in May 2026, seeking modular, communication-resilient, and rapidly fieldable capabilities to reacquire and neutralize underwater mine threats. Vatn's SIGURD system, which pairs autonomous detection and terminal engagement, executed the required missions and was selected by DIU to receive a challenge prize based on its performance.

Vatn launched SIGURD in July 2026, built in a matter of weeks by configuring the company's Skelmir S6 platform into a dedicated mine countermeasures system. It is designed, tested, and verified by a team of former Navy Explosive Ordnance Disposal technicians. Vatn's win in DIU's challenge points to growing government interest in affordable, rapidly fieldable mine countermeasures capability that keeps warfighters at safe standoff.

About Vatn Systems 
Vatn Systems is a leading defense technology company building autonomous underwater vehicles that can be deployed at scale for the U.S. military, allied nations, and commercial customers. Founded in 2023 by a team of maritime experts and military leaders, Vatn Systems is on a mission to be the next underwater defense prime in a world where autonomous systems dominate naval battlefields. For more information, visit www.vatn.com and follow the company on LinkedIn.

Media Contact: 
[email protected]

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/vatn-systems-wins-defense-innovation-units-mine-countermeasure-modernization-prize-challenge-302896598.html

SOURCE Vatn Systems