She is the sixteenth of her class and sixth of the significantly redesigned Block III, including a revised bow and VLS technology from the Ohio-class of guided missile submarines.

[12] Indiana was constructed by Huntington Ingalls Industries in partnership with the Electric Boat division of General Dynamics in Newport News, Virginia, with the initial contract awarded on 22 December 2008.

Two battleships, silhouetted above "SSN 789", represent BB-1 and BB-58, the ships that previously bore the Indiana namesake.

Three gears and a head of wheat on either side of "SSN 789" represent the agriculture and industry native to the state of Indiana.

Silver and gold dolphins on either side of the head of wheat and gears represent the technical prowess of the enlisted and officer submarine community.