Unmanned Maritime Vehicles (UMVs) have been under development, especially with US Navy research funds, for decades. However, meaningful advances in the commercial sector have only been seen in the past 20 years. In 1997 Bluefin Robotics was formed out of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Sea Grant College Program Autonomous Underwater Vehicle Lab. Since then many other companies have developed and delivered unmanned maritime vehicles. The transition from research topic to commercial technology has not always been easy, but it has been profound.