Bedrock Robotics Secures $80 Million for Autonomous Construction Equipment

With construction sites across the U.S. stalled by labor shortages, San Francisco-based startup Bedrock Robotics announced last week that it has raised $80 million to deploy autonomous excavators and bulldozers, needing no humans in the cab.

The company, which emerged from stealth alongside the announcement, retrofits standard heavy equipment with cameras, sensors, and machine-learning software designed to navigate rough terrain and perform excavation work with minimal oversight. Backers say it could help close a widening labor gap delaying housing, roads, and energy projects nationwide.

“All of these macroeconomic pressures are driving a massive need to build,” Bedrock Robotics founder and CEO Boris Sofman told Decrypt. “The construction labor force is short by half a million people, with 40% of that workforce retiring within 10 years, and not enough new entrants to meet current—and growing—demand.”

According to a June 2025 report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, nearly 400,000 construction jobs remain unfilled. Bedrock’s answer to this shortage is the Bedrock Operator, an AI-powered system that converts traditional construction vehicles into autonomous machines. The operator uses cameras, sensors, and machine-learning models to comprehend terrain and complete excavation tasks while providing real-time updates to project managers.

Sofman argued that rising demand and chronic workforce shortages make automation useful not only for profitability but also for addressing workplace injuries. “Construction is the most injury-prone industry across all job types,” he said. “There’s massive demand, insufficient labor supply, skyrocketing costs, and projects that simply don’t get done.”

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 199 workers were killed by heavy machinery in 2022 alone, part of 738 fatalities caused by contact with equipment or objects. These risks include crushing, amputations, and ejections from cabs, as detailed in a 2024 report by industrial injury law firm Talbot, Carmouche & Marcello.

While AI and automation raise concerns about job displacement, Sofman argues the situation is more complex. “If you make that more efficient, it unlocks projects that were funded but couldn’t proceed,” he said, emphasizing that it can create more jobs by accelerating development, thus supporting the economy.

Additionally, robotic construction vehicles can operate continuously for up to 24 hours a day, enhancing productivity.

Bedrock isn’t alone in promoting autonomy on construction sites. Built Robotics outfits excavators with its Exosystem kit for unmanned digging, while SafeAI converts haul trucks and loaders with retrofit autonomy packages. Newer startups like Polymath Robotics are creating plug-and-play autonomy stacks for industrial vehicles, and Lumina is developing all-electric, self-driving bulldozers.

Meanwhile, major companies like Caterpillar and John Deere are launching their autonomous machines—Caterpillar’s self-driving haul trucks already move millions of tons in quarries, and Deere recently unveiled an autonomous dump truck and a fleet of AI-powered tractors and mowers.

With growing competition, the global construction robot market is estimated to reach $8 billion by 2033.