With the D3000, China enters the robotic warship arms race

The D3000's closest international counterpart is the Sea Hunter, built for DARPA's ACTUV anti-submarine program. The 131-foot, 145 ton Sea Hunter has a speed of only 27 knots, but that's fine because it's conceived as a test ship for future unmanned operations. Conceptually, the Sea Hunter and its follow-ons would also take on roles like tracking enemy submarines and mine detection, as opposed to antiship role reflected the D3000 concept. Of course, there's nothing from stopping China from building its own sub-hunting robotic warships to make up for its historical anti-submarine warfare weakness. That China is already pitching a large robotic warship for export--and from a vendor not typically known for such offerings--suggests a high degree of confidence in the global competitiveness of the country's unmanned naval technologies.