U.S. Navy embedding AI into Maritime Operations Centers, admiral says
NewsApril 20, 2026
NATIONAL HARBOR, Maryland. The Navy is moving to embed artificial intelligence into its Maritime Operations Centers to create what one senior officer described as a "powerful human-machine team" capable of anticipating adversary actions and recommending courses of action to commanders in near real time, according to remarks made at the Sea-Air-Space exposition here.
Vice Adm. Mike Vernazza, commander of Naval Information Forces, told attendees at a panel discussion Monday that AI integration into MOCs represents the next major step in the Navy's effort to accelerate decision-making at the speed of modern combat operations.
"As we integrate AI into the MOCs, we'll create a powerful human-machine team that can anticipate adversary actions and recommend optimal courses of action for our joint forces," Vernazza said. "This augments the commander's ability to make the tough strategic decisions at the speed of war."
MOCs function as the Navy's primary operational command-and-control nodes, serving as warfighting platforms that aggregate and process information across multiple domains. Vernazza described them as central to the information warfare community's contribution to fleet operations, and said the centers are already being operated as active warfighting platforms rather than passive coordination hubs.
The push toward AI-enabled decision support comes as the Navy is simultaneously working to close training and readiness gaps across the information warfare community. Vernazza said Naval Information Forces took over the basic phase of training for ships' information warfare functions -- covering electronic warfare, communications, cryptology, cyber, and intelligence -- and has used that control to drive measurable readiness improvements.
The Navy launched an effort to ensure ships emerge from maintenance periods already prepared to begin operational training, and the initiative doubled the command's mission completion rate for ships coming out of the maintenance phase, he said, shaving13 weeks off training timelines for certain electronic warfare and communications pipelines.
Vernazza also announced that Naval Information Forces will partner with the Naval Postgraduate School this June to launch an applied AI master's program aimed at ensuring future Navy leaders can employ AI as a practical warfighting tool rather than a theoretical one.
