His expressed purpose was to make an engine of war so terrible that war would automatically be abolished.

The world, however, was not ready for diving boats and torpedoes, nor yet for the end of war, and his efforts had no tangible results.* * The submarine was the invention of David Bushnell, a Connecticut Yankee, whose "American Turtle" blew up at least one British vessel in the War of Independence and created much consternation among the King's ships in American waters.
During all the years after 1793, at least, and perhaps earlier, the idea of the steamboat had seldom been out of his mind, but lack of funds and the greater urgency, as he thought, of the submarine prevented him from working seriously upon it.

In 1801, however, Robert R.Livingston came to France as American Minister.

Livingston had already made some unsuccessful experiments with the steamboat in the United States, and, in 1798, had received the monopoly of steam navigation on the waters of New York for twenty years, provided that he produced a vessel within twelve months able to steam four miles an hour.

This grant had, of course, been forfeited, but might be renewed, Livingston thought.
Fulton and Livingston met, probably at Barlow's house, and, in 1802, drew up an agreement to construct a steamboat to ply between New York and Albany.