en.Wedoany.com Reported - San Francisco-based startup Gritt has emerged from stealth mode, securing over $32 million in total funding to deploy AI-driven robotic systems on large construction sites, with an initial focus on solar farms. The $26 million Series A round was led by Obvious Ventures, with participation from Union Square Ventures and Active Impact Investments, while the pre-seed round came from First Round Capital, Climactic, Congruent Ventures, and VSC Ventures.
Gritt's system does not replace existing construction equipment but rather retrofits onto it, using robotic arms mounted on standard skid-steer loaders and forklifts to pick, transport, and position solar panels with millimeter-level precision. According to the company, a typical eight-person team installs about 800 panels per day; the same team working in coordination with Gritt's system can place 3,000 to 4,000 panels per day. The company claims its machines have placed tens of thousands of panels with zero breakage, a statement that has not been independently verified.
Gritt says it has signed contracts to help install nearly 3 gigawatts of solar capacity over the next 18 months, with clients including three of the top ten power construction companies in the United States. Currently, only two systems are deployed on-site, but the company plans to scale to 48 systems within six months. The gap between two working machines and a contract pipeline worth multiple gigawatts of solar power reflects the distance between a promising demonstration and an operational business.
The timing aligns with demographic trends in the construction industry. According to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, over 41% of the construction workforce is expected to retire by 2031, and the industry has struggled to attract younger workers. Construction robotics startups on both sides of the Atlantic are raising funds to fill the gap, with investors betting that physical AI can transform construction sites the way automation transformed factories decades ago.
Gritt was co-founded by Puneet Puri and Vishal Dugar, both graduates of Carnegie Mellon University's robotics program. The system is designed to learn with each deployment; tasks that would normally require weeks of training can be completed in just a few days using the same underlying AI pipeline. The founders told TechCrunch that after completing solar panel work, a rebar tying demonstration required only one day of training. Beyond panel placement, Gritt plans to expand into construction tasks such as drilling piles, tying rebar, and installing mounting structures.
Competitors include Luminous Robotics, Cosmic, and China's Trinabot, all of which manufacture their own dedicated panel installation hardware rather than retrofitting AI onto existing equipment. Gritt's bet is that its approach scales faster and costs less, as clients do not need to purchase new equipment. Whether this advantage holds as the system scales from two to 48 units and expands from solar panels to broader construction tasks will determine the success of that bet.
