HD Hyundai Site Solution Deploys Unmanned Autonomous Excavator to Job Site for First Time

by SHIN JIA Posted : April 29, 2026, 10:56Updated : April 29, 2026, 10:56
HD Hyundai Site Solution’s unmanned autonomous excavator demonstrates the Real X system at ConExpo 2026 in North America.
An unmanned autonomous excavator is demonstrated at ConExpo 2026, a North American construction equipment trade show. [Photo=HD Hyundai Site Solution]
HD Hyundai Site Solution, the intermediate holding company for HD Hyundai’s construction machinery business, has deployed an unmanned autonomous excavator to an active construction site for the first time.

The company said Tuesday it delivered the excavator, developed with AI-based autonomy firm Gravis Robotics, to a site operated by European construction company KIBAG.

The machine is a 22-ton, mid-size excavator from HD Construction Equipment fitted with the “Real X” solution, combining HD Hyundai Site Solution’s smart platform with Gravis’ AI technology.

It is set to work at a construction site in Tuggen, Switzerland, carrying out civil engineering work autonomously on a project measuring 3 meters (10 feet) deep, 12 meters (39 feet) wide and 1 kilometer (0.6 miles) long.

The company said the Real X-equipped excavator can operate toward preset targets without being affected by operator fatigue or lapses in concentration, delivering average productivity of about 120% compared with manned operation.

The delivery follows an “autonomous construction equipment cooperation project” between HD Hyundai Site Solution and Gravis Robotics. The two companies have continued technical collaboration since signing an MOU at BAUMA 2025 in Germany on demonstrations of autonomous construction equipment.

HD Hyundai Site Solution said it plans to expand global partnerships and gradually increase deployments of unmanned autonomous construction equipment, building on earlier European demonstrations and the Swiss site supply.

“This project is a first step in implementing unmanned autonomous construction equipment technology at a real job site,” said Kim Pan-young, an executive director at HD Hyundai Site Solution. He said it would help improve safety and productivity and serve as a turning point that brings forward the future of the global construction machinery industry.



* This article has been translated by AI.