SoftBank invests $200 million in construction startup Gravis Robotics

SoftBank Group has invested $200 million in Gravis Robotics, a Swiss startup that makes autonomous software for construction machinery.

Zurich-based Gravis announced the Series A investment in a statement on Monday but didn’t share a valuation. It was reported in July that SoftBank was considering an acquisition of Gravis that might be completed in several stages, which includes injecting fresh capital over time.

The deal marks another splashy investment into robotics from SoftBank, whose founder, Masayoshi Son, is trying to make his firm a pivotal player in the global artificial intelligence race. The Japanese investor, which by October is set to own a 13% stake in OpenAI, has backed a range of robotics businesses, including with the acquisition of ABB’s industrial unit last year. SoftBank has set up a new holding company, Robo HD, and is planning to establish another robotics and AI firm called Roze in the U.S.

Founded as a spin out of ETH Zurich university in 2022, Gravis develops software and hardware for earthmoving equipment. By using its fully autonomous mode, the startup’s system lets machine operators “step away into safe and social environments to supervise entire robotic fleets,” the company wrote in its statement.

The startup also said on Monday that it was selected to retrofit heavy equipment for an $8 million government infrastructure project in the U.K.

Gravis previously raised $23 million in a November round round led by IQ Capital and Zacua Ventures.