Swiss-based earthmoving autonomy platform Gravis Robotics
has secured $23 million in fresh funding, co-led by IQ Capital and Zacua Ventures, with participation from Pear VC, Imad (CVC of Nesma & Partners),
Sunna Ventures, Armada Investment and Holcim. Alongside the funding, the
company has announced a series of new industry partnerships that further
strengthen its position in the effort to transform global construction.
Founded in late 2022 as a spinout from ETH Zurich, Gravis
addresses key structural challenges in the construction sector (rising demand,
declining productivity and an ageing workforce) by focusing on improving output
rather than overhauling existing processes. Leveraging the team’s expertise in
AI and autonomy, its retrofit system goes beyond basic command-based operation,
adapting to real ground conditions via a learning-based control system that
“feels the soil” using data from hydraulics, LiDAR, cameras and GNSS.
This core intelligence is connected to Gravis Slate, a
tablet interface designed to integrate into existing construction workflows.
The same sensor suite that enables autonomous operation also augments manual
work, creating a continuous data loop that supports performance improvements
and the rapid expansion of autonomous capabilities.
Designed to handle variable
site conditions across tasks such as trenching, earthworks, grading and
material handling, Gravis is built to complement human teams rather than replace
them, delivering around 30 per cent gains in output, reducing rework and
improving safety.
Ryan Luke Johns, CEO and co-founder of Gravis Robotics,
noted that the most effective path to autonomy begins with improving
productivity today:
By giving operators real-time 3D intelligence and the
ability to shift seamlessly between autonomy and augmented control, we cover
more of the work, accelerate adoption, and create the data pipeline needed to
learn new capabilities from the industry’s hardest jobs.
Gravis systems are already in use with major construction
companies, supporting site preparation, stockpile management and the loading of
trucks and screeners. Most recently, Gravis was deployed by Taylor Woodrow at
Manchester Airport, in what is described as the UK’s first large-scale use of
autonomous excavation on an active construction site.
The company is also
partnering with Flannery to offer turnkey excavators equipped with the Gravis
Rack and is rolling out similar models via OEM dealer networks, including
Develon in the UK and Kibag in Switzerland.
Following this expansion, Gravis is now active in seven
countries across the UK, EU, US, LATAM and Asia, representing one of the
broadest deployments of autonomous excavation technology worldwide across both
mixed-fleet and OEM-integrated equipment, and bringing autonomy directly into
the earthmoving equipment rental market.
With its latest funding, Gravis plans to further develop
its autonomy technology, deepen and scale its industry partnerships and
leverage existing global distribution channels to support the large-scale
rollout of autonomous earthmoving solutions.
