LANDCROS Innovation Studios Mining Challenge

Applications open
Pitch & Demo Day: 16th April 2026 • Brisbane

ABOUT THE CHALLENGE

Pitch your technology at our Demo Day in Brisbane on 16th April 2026

Hitachi Construction Machinery has launched the LANDCROS Innovation Studios Mining Challenge to select up to 10 high potential startups around the world with breakthrough mining technologies across three themes: Smarter Machines, Smarter Mine Sites and Low Impact & Sustainable Mining. The chosen ventures will have the opportunity to present their technologies to Hitachi Construction Machinery’s senior leadership and industrial partners for potential partnerships at a flagship Demo Day in Brisbane, Australia.

This initiative is designed to give mining startups at the cutting edge of automation, data-driven operations, energy efficiency, and sustainability greater access to Hitachi Construction Machinery’s industry expertise and Founders Factory's global ecosystem of investors and commercial partners.

LANDCROS Innovation Studios is the Corporate Venture Capital arm of Hitachi Construction Machinery.

Apply now

ABOUT THE CHALLENGE

Pitch your technology at our Demo Day in Brisbane on 16th April 2026

LANDCROS Innovation Studios is the Corporate Venture Capital arm of Hitachi Construction Machinery.

Apply now

WHY JOIN THE CHALLENGE?

Apply to the challenge and unlock commercial and investment opportunities with Hitachi Construction Machinery and Founders Factory

Access HCM Senior Team

Engage directly with Hitachi Construction Machinery’s senior leadership — experts in mining, innovation, and industrial transformation. Receive valuable insights, feedback, and potential partnership opportunities to accelerate the impact of your technology

Pilots & Commercial Opportunities

Turn your innovation into action. Selected startups will have the chance to explore pilot programs and commercial collaborations with HCM and its industrial partners, bringing breakthrough mining technologies to life.

Join a Global Network

Connect with a worldwide community of mining innovators, investors, and strategic partners through the Founders Factory global ecosystem. Expand your reach and build relationships that drive long-term growth.

Deals & Perks

Gain access to our hand-picked deals, discounts and benefits with leading software and service providers, worth $350,000.

CHALLENGE THEMES

JOIN A GLOBAL COMMUNITY

Our Industrial Tech Portfolio

Endolith
Endolith
/ Seed
Increasing copper recovery from low-grade ores in heap leaches by harnessing microbial communities, synthetic biology techniques, and a cloud-native platform
US
Durin
Durin
/ Seed
Automated drill rigs that consolidate drilling, lab testing, planning, and analysis into a single system
US
Terra AI
Terra AI
/ Series A
Combining geological data with AI-driven reasoning to optimise exploration in real time
US
Vycarb
Vycarb
/ Pre-Seed
CO2 removal and storage technology, facilitating permanent, low-cost, and fully-measured carbon capture, removal, and storage, using water and minerals
US
Rock Zero
Rock Zero
/ Seed
Zero waste, cost-efficient lithium extraction
US
Magmatic
Magmatic
/ Pre-Seed
Building a library of metal-binding proteins, to establish novel integrated separation process for improved recovery of critical metals
Austria
BluumBio
BluumBio
/ Pre-Seed
Enzyme database for removing pollutants from soil, air, and water
US
Rainstick
Rainstick
/ Pre-Seed
Mimicking effects of lightning to stimulate biological and electrochemical changes in seeds to enhancing crop performance
Australia
ProSpectral
ProSpectral
/ Pre-Seed
Next generation computer vision for material detection and analysis
UK
Thunderstone
Thunderstone
/ Pre-Seed
Extracting metals directly from underground deposits, using high-voltage electric fields to create fractures in rock, allowing conductive fluids to dissolve and extract metals.
US
Sunchem
Sunchem
/ Pre-Seed
Developing sustainable leaching and Nano Filter technologies for the precision separation of critical metals
US
Ekion
Ekion
/ Pre-Seed
Electrokinetic recovery to extract metals from stranded deposits
Australia