Overview
SpiderEgg
SpiderEgg is a modular UUV that carries three small kinetic effectors ("Spiders") in a lower payload bay and an upper deck for FPV drones, EW modules, or sensor pods. Built around COTS components for mass production, it launches from submarine torpedo tubes, surface vessels, or shore platforms.
The core innovation is energetic coupling: the three Spiders coordinate their terminal detonations in time and space so that hydrodynamic interactions amplify the combined blast, achieving lethality equivalent to the Mk 48 (the Navy's only heavyweight torpedo option) using just 52% of the ordnance, as validated by Stanford's Flow Physics & Computational Lab.
Over 180 stakeholder interviews, including 20 admirals and 30 acquisition officers, secured $100K in equity-free funding, a CRADA with the U.S. Navy, and a teaming agreement with a Big-5 defense prime.
| Lethality vs. Mk 48 | Same lethality using 48% less ordnance |
| Operational Range | 86 NM (3× the Mk 48) |
| TRL Achieved | TRL 6 (1:3 scale prototype tested in relevant environment) |
| Payload | |
| ↳ Upper deck | FPV drones, EW, ISR modules |
| ↳ Lower bay | 3 kinetic Spiders or 2 lightweight torpedoes |
| Launch Platforms | Submarine torpedo tubes, large UUVs, surface vessels, shore |
| Propulsion | Electric |
| Autonomy | Autonomous & semi-autonomous mission modes |
| Funding | $100K equity-free (DIU) + Navy CRADA |
Hydra Strike has been archived.
Featured in Hacking for Defense. Read the write-up →