Splash
Series ARaised Since FeaturedAutonomous patrol boats for national security
Y Combinator-backed startup building autonomous patrol boats for maritime border security and critical infrastructure defense.
About
Splash Inc. designs and builds autonomous surface vessels (ASVs) for national security, maritime border patrol, and critical infrastructure protection. Founded in 2024 by Ivan Avanesov and Marcell Veszpremi, the company builds both hardware and software in-house — from 10-foot jet boats capable of 50 knots and 800-mile patrol ranges to AI-powered threat detection systems that identify narco-submarines and suspicious vessels approaching oil rigs, shipping terminals, and coastal borders. The team has logged over 200 autonomous miles in San Francisco Bay and iterated through two complete boat builds in a single month. Splash graduated from Y Combinator's W25 batch and raised a $20M Series A led by Alexa Fund and BITKRAFT Ventures. Based in El Segundo, CA, the company is targeting the unmanned surface vehicle market projected to reach $3.4 billion by 2030.
DailyDropout Take
Splash caught our attention as a perfect case of timing meeting a massive market. The unmanned surface vehicle sector is projected to hit $3.4B by 2030, and Splash's founders bring proven hardware execution chops — one sold smoke machines to SpaceX, the other built championship robots at UCLA. While competitors like Saronic have raised $600M, Splash's scrappy approach of designing, building, sinking, and rebuilding boats in weeks shows the kind of rapid iteration that defines great hardware startups.
Discovery signal: Y Combinator W25 batch, founders with proven hardware backgrounds (SpaceX supplier, UCLA robotics champion), rapid prototype iteration
What Makes Them Unique
Splash combines rapid hardware iteration (two complete boat builds in one month) with full in-house autonomy software, targeting the defense and maritime security market with small, fast, affordable patrol boats — a nimble alternative to the large, expensive ASVs being built by better-funded competitors.
200+
Autonomous Miles
50 knots
Top Speed
800 miles
Patrol Range
$20M
Series A
Target Markets
Founders
Ivan Avanesov
Co-Founder & CEO
8 years of marine robotics research experience. Previously founded Vosentech, the largest supplier of mini smoke machines globally, designing and manufacturing 10,000+ generators for SpaceX, Apple, NASA, and Los Alamos National Laboratory.
Marcell Veszpremi
Co-Founder & CTO
6+ years in robotics, embedded systems, and IoT. Worked on the Artemis humanoid robot at UCLA's RoMeLa lab, which won the RoboCup 2024 championship. Previously at Verkada working on embedded software and battery management systems.
Splash is hiring!
Team size: ~7
Funding History
Lead: Y Combinator
Lead: Alexa Fund & BITKRAFT Ventures