An underwater drone company moved to Gulfport. Can it pump up Mississippi’s economy?

The underwater drones dive and float along the Gulf Coast and around the world.

They collect intelligence for the U.S. Navy, observe oil fields, study marine life and map seafloors.

Could they also help Mississippi’s economy?

The state’s most prominent leaders think so.

Ocean Aero – which makes uncrewed machines that operate on their own above and below water – moved from San Diego to Gulfport in 2021. The match might have seemed unlikely, but Ocean Aero drew a warm Mississippi welcome. Their executives said they liked the area. They admired the neighbors. And they planned to stay.

Gov. Tate Reeves and Mississippi’s two senators backed the move. Mississippi, they say, is a perfect place for companies to prosper, and Ocean Aero, which has created at least 50 new jobs, is one worth championing.

This fall, Ocean Aero will move into new headquarters at the Port of Gulfport. And with neighbors including the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the University of Southern Mississippi and local industries such as shipbuilding and defense, “that is a perfect sweet spot for a company like ours,” said Keith Blystone, Ocean Aero’s chief of staff.

That their work will “help keep America safer while at the same time exploring our oceans,” Blystone said, “is a great mission to get behind.”

Can underwater drones boost the state economy?

Mississippi has long been known for low education, poor infrastructure and a weak economy. Less than a quarter of residents have a bachelor’s degree or higher and national studies rank Mississippi last for business in nearly every metric.

But Reeves has made talk of the economy a priority in the upcoming governor’s election. He declared an annual “economic development week” in May. The state has plans to attract high-paying jobs and grow the defense industry. Reeves has said more of Mississippi’s residents are working in-state than ever before, and he and others have called Ocean Aero an example of how to do things right.

“Glad to welcome Ocean Aero to the Gulf Coast,” Reeves said when the announcement became public.

“I look forward to watching Ocean Aero grow,” Sen. Roger Wicker said in a statement. He added: “I am confident their success along the Gulf Coast will help draw other top companies to our state.”

Any new jobs – especially high-tech roles – are good, said Edward Sayre, an economics professor at the University of Southern Mississippi. But he said 50 jobs do not lead to dramatic impacts and questioned whether other companies would follow.

“There’s still a long way to go to make Mississippi truly business friendly,” Sayre said.

Ocean Aero builds underwater drones

Ocean Aero’s “TRITON” vessels are unmanned and solar-powered – and they’re building more, fast. Because they run without people on board, they are safer than traditional ocean exploration, Blystone said.

The U.S. Navy and their allies use the machines in places such as the Middle East and Asia to collect data and protect American interests. They are the only vessels in the world that run automatically above and below water, and engineers train the machines to dive quickly if they sense danger.

“You can’t do that in Iowa,” said Jon Nass, CEO of the Port of Gulfport. “You don’t have an ocean.

“The Gulf Coast is the perfect place for this industry to prosper.”

It is home to the Stennis Space Center and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Unmanned Systems Operations Program. The University of Southern Mississippi works with NOAA and Ocean Aero on their own uncrewed vessel programs, and the “blue economy” – which includes marine industries from shipbuilding to seafood processing – employs more than 74,400 people by state estimates.

Sayre, the economist, said a fundamental question is this: “Can I incentivize my workforce to move there?”

“The Coast doesn’t fit that bill,” he said, because despite its progress, the region lacks the momentum of fast-growing suburbs elsewhere in the country that attract business at scale.

Still, Ocean Aero is proud to hire local staff who can work “right here in their backyard,” Blystone said. “That is not insignificant.”