[2][3][4] The ship was first announced by Prime Minister Boris Johnson on 19 November 2020 as part of a defence investment pledge ahead of the Integrated Review.

[4] On 30 November 2020, the Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom) (MoD) stated that the concept phase for the vessel had not yet been launched but added that the ship was envisioned as a "platform for autonomous systems", used in roles such as anti-submarine warfare and mine countermeasures.

[8] The revised National Shipbuilding Strategy, released in March 2022, suggested that the Type 32 frigates were likely to be "the first of a new generation of warships with a focus on hosting and operating autonomous onboard systems".

[9] Earlier comments by the UK's Minister for Defence Procurement, Jeremy Quin, also suggested that the new Type 32 frigate will be a platform for autonomous systems, adding to the Royal Navy's capabilities for missions such as anti-submarine warfare and mine countermeasures.

[12] Described as mixture between a frigate and a cargo ship, the design features aesthetic characteristics of the Type 26 frigate on the forward half of the vessel with gunnery systems (BAE/Bofors 57Mk3 and 40MK4), vertical launch systems (CAMM Mushroom Farms and Mark-41), laser directed energy weapon mounts (Dragonfire) and sensors; however the aft half features a full width space above deck for containers (Including mission modules), four large boat bays, hangar, UAV kennel, Chinook-capable flight deck and a large under-flight deck mission bay with a large stern ramp capable of deploying two 11 metre-sized craft flanked by two small davits.

Babcock officially revealed the Multi-Role Naval Platform variant of their Arrowhead 140 design (same design as selected for the Type 31 frigates) for the Type 32 programme in 2023 (although it had previously been seen on AH140 marketing videos and on their website) [15][16] The design features a stern boat ramp connected to the existing mission bay under the flight deck, a side hydraulic ramp, an enlarged hangar with capacity for up-to two Merlin AW101-sized helicopters which is directly connected to a full-width mission bay replacing the 32-cell vertical launch complex amidships and is capable of supporting 11-metre craft (e.g. USV, RHIBs) or TEU containers.