A team from Northwestern Polytechnical University and Xi’an Tianhe Maritime Technologies Co., Ltd. set a Guinness World Records mark with 116 autonomous underwater vehicles operating at the same time. The demonstration showed the compact craft navigating together in formation in a university outdoor pool—not a swarm of aerial drones or an open-water mission.
What record did the Chinese team set?
Guinness World Records lists the achievement under the title “Most autonomous underwater vehicles operating simultaneously.” The record total is 116 vehicles, achieved in Xi’an, Shaanxi, China, on 29 August 2026. Guinness names Northwestern Polytechnical University and Xi’an Tianhe Maritime Technologies Co., Ltd. as the record holders.
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The attempt took place in an outdoor university pool measuring 50 meters by 20 meters, according to Guinness. That setting matters: the record establishes a large coordinated underwater-vehicle operation in a defined environment, not performance on a seafloor survey or in open water.
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They were deployed sequentially, then navigated autonomously
In an account published on 29 September 2026, Northwestern Polytechnical University said the TH-618 vehicles were deployed one after another. They then entered autonomous underwater navigation and maintained formation using real-time visual perception. The university said there was no human intervention during the operation.
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The team reported a route and duration
The university reported that the formation followed a predetermined route of more than 500 meters and completed 34 minutes of stable, continuous operation. Those figures describe this pool demonstration; they are not a general endurance or range result for a swarm operating in the ocean.
Why is underwater coordination difficult?
The university describes several constraints that distinguish underwater operation from controlling drones in the air: wireless signals and satellite navigation are unavailable underwater, commands cannot be transmitted in real time, visibility can be low, and vehicles have limited ability to perceive their surroundings. Its account presents real-time visual perception and autonomous coordination as ways the TH-618 formation handled the demonstration’s navigation task.
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The university says its underwater research program has focused since 2010 on information sensing, target detection and intelligent unmanned vehicles. It describes the partners’ work as covering research, system design, precision manufacturing and industrialization.
What are the TH-618 vehicles?
Northwestern Polytechnical University reports the following specifications for the compact, purpose-built TH-618. These are the university’s stated figures, not independent test results.
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- Dimensions: 61.5 cm long, 20 cm wide and 28 cm high.
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- Maximum cruising range: 30 km, as reported by the university.
- Continuous operation: more than eight hours, as reported by the university.
The reported 30-kilometer cruising range and more-than-eight-hour operating time are vehicle specifications; they should not be confused with what the 116-vehicle record attempt demonstrated. The event account describes a 34-minute formation-navigation run on a route exceeding 500 meters.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What the record does—and does not—show
The vehicles demonstrated coordinated formation navigation in a pool. The university says the team plans to continue exploring marine exploration and underwater operations. Secondary reporting has mentioned seabed mapping and pipeline inspection as possible applications, but neither task was part of the record attempt described by Guinness or the university.
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- It was an underwater record: the vehicles were autonomous underwater vehicles, not flying drones.
- It was a controlled demonstration: the attempt took place in a 50-by-20-meter outdoor pool, rather than on an open-water mission.
- It demonstrated navigation: mapping, pipeline inspection and other operational uses remain prospective in the accounts of this event.
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