American shipyards today cannot handle the Navy’s peacetime demands. They certainly could not handle wartime conditions. China, however, can. Further, all China needs to do is create enough warships to overwhelm the Americans in waters closer to Chinese territory than to America to give Beijing the victory at sea it seeks over Washington.

Drawing on lessons from fleet experimentation and real-world developments in the Black and Red seas, Adm. Lisa Franchetti said the Navy must deliver a proven hybrid fleet that incorporates robotic