Azimut presented the Grande 44M at the 2026 Cannes Yachting Festival, where the yacht received the Special Jury Award at the Innovation Route Awards, the French show's prize for solutions in the international marine industry.

The jury pointed to the model's ability to bring together a set of applied innovations in a single hull, with particular reference to the reduction in fuel consumption for a yacht of this size. In the jury's words, the project introduces "a new approach in the large yacht segment".

The Grande 44M uses a four-deck layout made possible by extensive use of carbon fibre, which cuts the weight of the superstructure and frees the entire Upper Deck for the owner. Aft, the Mezzanine Deck houses the Sea View Terrace and the See-Through Pool, which overlooks the beach club.

Technically, the yacht carries a carbon Hull Vane® foil that reduces drag and pitching, and a Dual Mode hull that acts on consumption and comfort across the full speed range. Thirty square metres of solar panels feed the hotel load. The Mild Hybrid system, with a battery room of up to 230 kWh, allows long stops at anchor with no emissions and no engine noise.

Azimut states a reduction in CO₂ emissions of up to 30 per cent for the Grande 44M compared with yachts of similar size. The model belongs to the yard's Low Emission Yacht fleet.

Azimut was founded by Paolo Vitelli in 1969 and is part of the Azimut|Benetti Group. It builds motor yachts from 13 to 44 metres across seven series: Verve, Atlantis, Magellano, Fly, S, Grande and Seadeck. The company is based in Avigliana, near Turin, and runs five production sites in Italy (Avigliana, Fano, Viareggio, Savona and Varazze) and one in Itajaí, Brazil. It operates in 80 countries and has direct offices in Shanghai, Hong Kong, Fort Lauderdale and Itajaí.