Andrenam Chosen for ANTX Coastal Trident Exercise and Secures $10M to Propel Maritime Intelligence Development
Andrenam, a NW Tech Bridge client, is gearing up to showcase some exciting advancements in maritime sensing and data fusion as part of the upcoming Advanced Naval Technology Exercise (ANTX) August 4th – 8th near the Port of Hueneme, CA.
The startup just secured $10M in funding to close the maritime intelligence gap with a revolutionary ocean sensing network powered by AI, passive sonar, and edge computing. Built by alumni from SpaceX, Anduril, and more, Andrenam’s smart buoys offer real-time, autonomous awareness of what’s happening above, on, and beneath the sea — even in the world’s most contested waters. With this raise led by First Round Capital, Andrenam is scaling up to deliver a future where the ocean is no longer a blind spot — but a strategic edge.
Just one year ago, Co-founders Matej Cetnosek and Alex Chu were bootstrapping their first prototype in a garage. Now, they have closed a $10M funding round that will support doubling the team to 16 people (with a focus on software engineering) and building integrated hardware—plus the purchase of a boat for deployment and testing.
Andrenam’s rapid progress is nothing short of impressive. With support from NW Tech Bridge, the startup was connected to a team of Navy experts, received vital feedback on its prototype, and gained access to testing facilities and funding opportunities.
The company is currently in the first phase of its three-stage roadmap to revolutionize maritime intelligence:
- Pilot deployments and ML development – deploying smart buoys and building core acoustic models to detect and track vessels.
- Scale and partner – expanding its machine learning capabilities and working with defense, public safety, and commercial partners.
- Global ocean coverage – creating a vast network of smart buoys to provide real-time maritime awareness.
Co-founders Matej Cetnosek, CEO (left) and Alex Chu, CTO (right).
Andrenam to Showcase Cloud-Fused Maritime Sensing at ANTX
We caught up with the Andrenam team for a quick Q&A on what they’re bringing to the table at Coastal Trident, what they hope to learn, and why this event is a milestone in their development journey.
Q: What specific technologies or capabilities will you be testing during the event?
At ANTX, we will be deploying three or more of our next generation buoys in cooperation with other participants. Andrenam will be demonstrating the meshing of these units and fusing sonar data across them in the cloud, to demonstrate a common operating picture (COP) of the undersea and surface domain. The goal will be to track multiple targets from Unmanned Underwater Vehicles (UUVs) to surface vehicles (both manned and unmanned).
Q: What do you hope to learn from this exercise? Will there be a final report?
We hope to underscore our ability to fuse sonar data in the cloud and to demonstrate our capability of detecting and tracking objects across all of them. Further, we wish to highlight our ability to produce this hardware at scale and demonstrate production readiness. We can provide a final report to DoD entities upon request.
Q: What makes this event unique or important for Andrenam?
There are so many wonderful companies that are bringing their technologies to ANTX. We are excited to work with them and to demonstrate our capabilities across diverse domains and targets.
ANTX Coastal Trident: Where Innovation Meets Operational Need in Maritime Security
Launched in 2007 at the Port of Hueneme, California, Coastal Trident has grown from a local training initiative into a leading operational research program focused on maritime security. What began as an effort to prepare law enforcement and emergency responders now serves as a national platform for innovation, experimentation, and collaboration among defense, industry, and academic stakeholders.
Led by the Naval Surface Warfare Center, Port Hueneme Division (NSWC PHD), Coastal Trident operates within the Advanced Naval Technology Exercise (ANTX) framework. Its mission is to accelerate the development, assessment, and transition of technologies aligned with Navy operational needs. By offering a realistic, controlled environment, the program enables stakeholders to demonstrate capabilities, test systems, and refine procedures critical to national and port security. Coastal Trident taps into an unparalleled network of exclusive land, portside, and open-ocean facilities across Southern California to create dynamic, real-world testing and training environments. Stretching across more than 200 miles of coastline and venturing into clear offshore zones—away from crowded shipping lanes and leisure waters—this expansive range offers a rare, disruption-free space for bold experimentation and mission-ready innovation.
In the execution phase, field experiments and exercises are completed. ANTX-Coastal Trident follows a modular planning and execution model, allowing activities to align with available resources and maximize knowledge transfer. Program events take place between June and September, culminating in an Open House at the end of the fiscal year.
A Testbed for Transition
Coastal Trident enables innovators to showcase and refine their technologies alongside military, government, and commercial stakeholders. Through a combination of technical demonstrations, field experiments, and full-scale exercises, participants can:
- Test systems in operationally relevant conditions
- Receive direct feedback from end users
- Accelerate the path from prototype to program of record
This is more than a demo day—it’s a proving ground.
Key Activities for Innovators Include:
- Discussion-Based Exercises – Workshops and tabletop sessions that explore capability gaps and inform future development.
- Field Experiments – Structured evaluations of system performance under realistic maritime and port security scenarios.
- Operations-Based Activities – Live exercises that simulate threats and test responses—ideal for assessing technical and tactical integration.
2025 Priorities
The 2025 cycle of Coastal Trident will focus on technologies that address:
- Critical infrastructure protection and incident response
- Maritime domain awareness and decision support tools
- Maintenance and sustainment of Navy surface fleet and expeditionary systems
- AR/VR solutions for modeling, simulation, and training
- Unmanned systems—both applications and countermeasures
For innovators, Coastal Trident is a rare opportunity to gain traction with Navy stakeholders, validate performance under mission-like conditions, and accelerate transition into programs that matter. If you’d like to propose a project for ANTX-Coastal Trident, complete the submission form on the ANTX Website and email it to the Principal Investigator for consideration. Proposals will be evaluated based on submission timing, research value, alignment with operational and technical objectives, and resource availability.
Questions? Reach out to NW Tech Bridge today for support!