Emesent, an Australian autonomous mapping and robotics company developing AI-powered mapping, autonomy, and 3D data platforms, has secured AUD 25 million in new funding to accelerate the development of its Cortex AI autonomy platform, expand its Aura cloud software, and scale manufacturing for global growth. The funding includes a AUD 10 million venture debt facility from the National Reconstruction Fund Corporation (NRFC) and a AUD 15 million equity round backed by Main Sequence, QIC Ventures, Orion Resource Partners, Hostplus, and NGS Super.
Expanding AI and Manufacturing
The investment will support manufacturing expansion at Emesent’s Queensland facility while advancing two core products: Cortex AI, the company’s onboard autonomy platform for GPS-denied environments, and Aura, its cloud software for 3D data processing, visualization, and analytics. The company also plans to grow its Australian workforce to meet increasing international demand across mining, defense, and architecture, engineering and construction (AEC).
Charles Miller, CEO of Emesent, said: “This investment accelerates everything we’re building at Emesent. Our clients operate in some of the most demanding environments on the planet, and they rely on our technology to make those environments understood. NRFC’s support means we can scale our manufacturing, push our AI and autonomy capabilities further, and deepen our presence in the sectors that matter most to Australia’s future, including mining, defense, and critical infrastructure. We’re proud to be building this from Queensland, Australia.”
Investor Support
The funding marks NRFC’s first venture debt investment in a deep-tech company, highlighting confidence in Emesent’s commercial growth and Australian-developed robotics technology. Existing investor Main Sequence also participated alongside new and returning institutional investors.
David Gall, CEO of NRFC, said: “Emesent’s pioneering physical AI technology was spun out of the CSIRO in 2018, and we are proud to be supporting the commercialization of Australian-developed intellectual property. Robotics and autonomous systems are emerging as critical segments of the Australian economy, and this investment will help anchor these capabilities in Australia — creating highly skilled jobs while strengthening our sovereign capability in sectors that underpin the nation’s future.”
Mike Zimmerman, Partner at Main Sequence, added: “Since 2018, Emesent has been pioneering how clients map, understand and operate in some of the most complex, dangerous environments around the world, with millions of missions in hundreds of mines and worksites. We’re proud to continue supporting Emesent as they scale and make their world-leading autonomy and analytics platforms available to even more clients.”
Growth Strategy
Emesent’s portfolio includes Hovermap LiDAR payloads, the GX1 scanning platform, Aura cloud software, and Cortex AI autonomy technology, serving customers in more than 40 countries. The new funding will help expand software capabilities alongside hardware deployments as the company continues growing its autonomous intelligence platform.