Hitachi Construction Machinery has shortlisted 10 global start-ups, including one Australian company, to pitch their technologies at a major mining innovation event in Brisbane, as part of its LANDCROS Innovation Studios Mining Challenge.
The companies were selected from a pool of 135 applicants following a competitive review process assessing innovation, feasibility and growth potential. They will present their solutions across three mining-focused themes at a pitch and demonstration event on April 16, 2026.
The Brisbane event will bring together around 100 participants, including start-ups, venture capital firms, industry stakeholders and government representatives, with the aim of fostering collaboration and accelerating innovation across the mining sector.
Three “Grand Winners” – one from each theme – will ultimately be selected to collaborate with Hitachi Construction Machinery on advancing their technologies.
The initiative forms part of Hitachi’s broader LANDCROS Innovation Studios program, which is designed to drive open innovation and co-creation with external partners.
Hitachi Construction Machinery vice president and executive officer and mining business unit president Eiji Fukunishi said the program reflects the company’s commitment to collaborative development.
“The ‘O’ in LANDCROS stands for ‘Open’ and reflects our desire to openly co-create new businesses and value with external partners including start-up companies and develop together,” Fukunishi said.
“We are pleased to have the opportunity to meet with start-up companies from around the world through the LANDCROS Innovation Studios Mining Challenge.
“Going forward, we will help solve challenges and develop the mining industry through co-creation with external partners.”
The shortlisted companies span a range of emerging technologies targeting productivity, sustainability and operational efficiency across mining value chains.
Under the “smarter machines” theme, companies such as Canada’s Rigid Robotics and Israel-based Dig Robotics are leveraging artificial intelligence and computer vision to enhance excavation performance and enable future autonomous operations. Spain’s FOSSA Systems and Canada’s GECCO are focused on connectivity and edge computing solutions for remote mining environments.
The “smarter mine sites” category features companies including IntelliSense.io, NTWIST and Strayos, all of which are applying AI-driven optimisation across the mine-to-mill process to improve recovery rates, align planning with operational constraints and enhance drilling and blasting outcomes.
Sustainability is a key focus of the third theme, “low impact and sustainable mining”, with finalists developing solutions to reduce emissions, improve water treatment and lower fuel consumption. These include Finland’s Weeefiner, Australia’s Clear Carbon and Chile’s COSMOS Save Energy.
Clear Carbon focuses on mining-grade emissions intelligence that turns fleet efficiency into verified emissions outcomes for reporting and reduction.
Ahead of the pitch event, the selected companies will visit Hitachi Construction Machinery (Australia)’s service facilities in Brisbane and Wacol, where they will gain first-hand exposure to mining equipment and operations.
Hitachi said the site visits are designed to deepen engagement between participants and provide practical insights to support collaboration opportunities.
The LANDCROS Innovation Studios Mining Challenge underscores the growing role of start-ups and digital innovation in shaping the future of mining, as OEMs increasingly look to partner with emerging technology providers to address industry challenges and unlock new efficiencies.