Commando units are already putting Cobalt into use, bringing together data from sensors, autonomous platforms and other sources. The Ministry of Defence says the software uses artificial intelligence to speed up planning and decision-making in contested environments and will make it easier to add new hardware and AI tools.
Chief of the Defence Staff Sir Richard Knighton announced the deal aboard HMS Prince of Wales at the Atlantic Future Forum. “Cobalt will give our commandos a decisive edge, bringing their sensors, autonomous platforms and data together so that they can make decisions faster than any adversary,” he said.
The trials with Norwegian units will take place under the Joint Expeditionary Force’s Northern Navies Initiative, announced by the First Sea Lord at the forum. The ministry said Cobalt would help the commandos work with other British units and partner forces in the coalition.
Arondite will open its first office outside the UK in Oslo and plans to invest £35 million (NOK 430 million) in Norway over five years. “Our allies in Norway are working side-by-side with UK Commandos every day on the frontline of European security,” said Will Blyth, Arondite’s co-founder and chief executive.
The Oslo office will support work with Norway’s armed forces, Norwegian industry and NATO allies. “Its expansion into Norway shows how British innovation can help our closest allies meet the security challenges of today and tomorrow,” AI Minister Kanishka Narayan said of Arondite.
The Ministry of Defence said Arondite was on track to double its workforce to 150 by summer 2027. “Arondite’s work with the Royal Navy will put cutting-edge software in the hands of our commandos, and their expansion into Norway shows the appetite for British technology among our closest allies,” said Luke Pollard, minister for defence readiness and industry.
The Navy deal follows the deployment of Cobalt across the British Army’s 16 Air Assault Brigade Combat Team earlier this year. It is Arondite’s second major contract announcement of 2026.
The UK Commando Force is receiving an additional £100 million under the Defence Investment Plan to develop capabilities for special maritime and amphibious operations in the High North. The plan sets out £298 billion in defence investment over four years, according to the ministry.
The ministry cited the Lunna House agreement and plans for a combined Type 26 anti-submarine frigate fleet as examples of UK–Norwegian defence cooperation. It said the frigate deal supports 4,000 jobs across the UK supply chain, including more than 2,000 in Scotland.
