Groundbreaking: World’s First Seaglider Manufacturing Facility Takes Shape in Rhode Island
We celebrated the groundbreaking of the world’s first Seaglider Manufacturing Facility today, marking a pivotal moment in REGENT’s history and a critical step toward transforming transportation for coastal communities around the globe.
The 255,000 square-foot facility, located in the Quonset Business Park in North Kingstown, RI, will enable us to manufacture our all-electric seagliders right here in the Ocean State.
Coming online in 2026, the facility will house seaglider component manufacturing, vehicle final assembly, and pre-delivery testing for our 12-passenger Viceroy seaglider.
Read the press release from the Quonset Development Corporation here.
Groundbreaking ceremony
More than 100 guests, including Rhode Island public officials, members of the Quonset Development Corporation, and local community members gathered under an American flag on the facility site, located just steps from Narragansett Bay. The event included remarks and a ceremonial breaking of the ground.
Speakers included (in speaking order) Quonset Development Corporation Managing Director Steven King, RI Governor Dan McKee, U.S. Senator Jack Reed, U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, U.S. Representative Seth Magaziner, U.S. Representative Gabe Amo, RI House Speaker Joseph Shekarchi, RI Senator Robert Britto, and REGENT Co-founder and CEO Billy Thalheimer.
"Thanks to companies like REGENT, Rhode Island is becoming a destination for innovation," said RI Gov. Dan McKee. "This new manufacturing facility not only bolsters our economy through good-paying jobs, but reaffirms our state's position as the epicenter of the blue economy.”
“Breaking ground on the Seaglider Manufacturing Facility represents a pivotal moment in REGENT’s history, bringing us closer to meeting the incredible global demand for our all-electric seagliders,” said Billy Thalheimer, Co-Founder and CEO of REGENT. “We are honored to partner with our state leaders, the Quonset Development Corporation, and our local community members to create well-paying jobs in Rhode Island, reinvigorate American-made manufacturing, and make the Ocean State the global epicenter of the Blue Economy.”
Our path to manufacturing
Since moving to Rhode Island in the summer of 2022, we have been building toward this moment.
We have grown our global commercial order book to more than $9 billion across six continents and established REGENT as a trusted defense contractor with the U.S. Marine Corps, showing a strong demand signal for seagliders across different regions and mission sets.
We’ve attracted the top experts across maritime, aviation, and technology industries to Rhode Island to develop seaglider technology, creating a blueprint for reinvigorating American-made manufacturing.
And we’ve created our full-scale, passenger-carrying seaglider prototype, which will start sea trials in the coming months and make history with the first-ever human flight on a seaglider this year.
Elevating Rhode Island
We chose Rhode Island as our headquarters because it offers the ideal conditions to develop a new maritime vessel: diverse coastal testing environments, strong naval architecture and composites expertise, and access to top talent from across New England.
“REGENT Craft is leading the way toward a future of clean, fast coastal travel, and we are thrilled that they’ve chosen to do it here in the Ocean State, where we are experts in composites manufacturing,” said U.S. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse.
REGENT has received $1 million from the Rhode Island Commerce Department under the First Wave Closing Fund Act, and the state has further committed to investing $3M under the Rebuild Rhode Island Tax Credit Act.
In addition, REGENT has committed to creating 300 jobs, with the potential for up to 750, over the next 10 years, unlocking up to $13 million in incentives under Rhode Island’s Qualified Jobs Program.
"REGENT Craft’s growth and progress here is an encouraging sign. They have demonstrated commitment to creating good-paying jobs for Rhode Islanders in a rapidly growing industry and contributing to our Blue Economy,” said U.S. Sen. Jack Reed.
So far, we have created more than 100 jobs, reinvested nearly $40 million into the state, and supported local educational and vocational initiatives like Skills RI.
We’re contributing to amplifying the state’s maritime manufacturing industry, helping anchor Rhode Island as the global hub for the Blue Economy.
And we’ve brought millions in venture-capital investment into Rhode Island, including the largest venture-capital raise in state history in our $60 million Series A, raising Rhode Island’s global profile in innovation and entrepreneurship.
The Seaglider Manufacturing Facility will enable us to expand our local impact and meet the overwhelming global demand for seagliders for years to come.