Gravis Robotics completes $23M round to accelerate international expansion

ETH spinoff Gravis Robotics, the startup enabling next-generation earthmoving autonomy that boosts job site performance, has finalised a $23 million funding round co-led by IQ Capital and Zacua Ventures. The capital be used to accelerate growth across the UK, US and EU, as well as expand the team and network of partnerships with OEMs, contractors, and dealers.

Gravis helps offers retrofit kits that turn heavy construction machinery like excavators and loaders into autonomous systems using AI, sensors, LiDAR, cameras, and GNSS for adaptive earthmoving tasks. Beyond taking simple commands, Gravis’ retrofit system adapts to real ground conditions through a learning-based control system that “feels the soil” using data from hydraulics, LiDAR, cameras and GNSS. This intelligence is paired with Gravis Slate – a tablet interface designed to fit seamlessly into construction workflows, that uses the robotic sensor suite to also augment manual operations – creating a continuous data loop that helps Gravis improve performance and expand its autonomous capabilities at speed.

The platform was built to handle the unpredictability of sites across a range of tasks — from trenching and earthworks to grading, material handling and more — thereby enhancing human teams rather than replacing them, boosting output 30%, reducing rework, and improving safety. Morgan Sindall Construction, one Gravis’ partners, described the startup’s robotic excavator “as productive as a skilled machine driver – and in some instances, enhanced team efficiency.”

Besides Sindall Construction, Gravis is also collaborating with companies such as Holcim, Taylor Woodrow, HD Hyundai and more, enabling them to bring real-world impact to sites in UK, US, EU, LATAM and Asia. Building on the traction the company has built in just three years, the company is now ready to further scale with in Europe, as its launchpad for global deployment. 

Gravis has now raised $23 million in a new funding round co-led by IQ Capital and Zacua Ventures, with Pear VC, Imad Ventures (the corporate venture capital arm of Nesma & Partners), Sunna Ventures, Armada Investment and Holcim. The proceeds will be used to accelerate Gravis’ global rollout, grow the team, and expand the company’s growing network of partnerships with OEMs, contractors, and dealers.

“Gravis stands out, not just for its technical brilliance, but for how much it’s already achieved. The team’s thoughtful, grounded approach to autonomy – deploying real systems with real crews – has led to trusted partnerships with some of the largest global construction companies and OEMs and invaluable data from time-in-field. This huge and unserved market is ready now for autonomy and Gravis is setting the pace”, said Archie Muirhead, partner at IQ Capital.

Behind Gravis is an experienced team comprising co-founder and CEO Ryan Luke Johns, an architect, roboticist and holder of the Guinness World Record for the largest dry-stone wall built by a robot. Co-founder CTO Dominic Jud is a robotic systems expert in autonomous control systems for complex machinery.

(Press release/RAN)