Gravis Robotics Raises $200M Series A Led by SoftBank to Automate Construction

Zurich-based Gravis Robotics has raised $200 million in a Series A funding round led by SoftBank. The investment will scale the global rollout of the company's AI-powered autonomy kits for heavy construction equipment.

The company develops the "Gravis Rack," a retrofit autonomous control kit and software designed for excavators and other heavy machinery. Unlike systems that require the purchase of new equipment, the Gravis Rack is compatible with mixed fleets from major manufacturers, including Caterpillar, Case, Develon, John Deere, JCB, Hitachi, Sumitomo, Yanmar, and Volvo. Gravis claims this $200 million round is the largest in the history of construction robotics, and that its system can improve productivity by up to 30% compared with peak manual operations.

The Shift to Physical AI

Spun out of ETH Zurich in 2022, Gravis Robotics focuses on "physical AI" to bridge the "sim-to-real gap." In construction, machines must operate in unpredictable, changing terrain where soil mechanics vary constantly. To solve this, Gravis uses synthetic training to simulate billions of cubic yards of material, providing the AI with the physical intuition necessary for complex earthmoving.

Co-founder and CTO Dominic Jud explained that the AI grounds physical input in machine telemetry, allowing the system to respond to varying subterranean forces and soil mechanics at microsecond speeds. This approach allows the machinery to adapt to the environment in real-time, a critical requirement for autonomous operation in unstructured outdoor settings.

Industry Implications

The construction industry is a trillion-dollar market currently facing severe labor shortages and a heavy reliance on traditional mechanical hardware. By providing a brand-agnostic retrofit solution, Gravis lowers the financial and operational barriers for contractors to adopt autonomy. This technology is particularly relevant for high-stakes projects, including critical infrastructure, defense, and the rapid buildout of data centers.

Dai Sakata, managing director of SoftBank Group, noted that physical AI is central to SoftBank’s vision for the next phase of artificial intelligence. Co-founder and CEO Ryan Luke Johns added that to build the future, the company needs to "change the world, literally."

Future Outlook

Gravis is already applying its technology in the field, leading an $8 million U.K. government-backed CAM Pathfinder project in partnership with Flannery Plant Hire. As the company scales its global rollout, the industry will be watching to see if the claimed 30% productivity gains hold across diverse global terrains and whether the retrofit model can accelerate the adoption of autonomy across the broader construction sector.