Human-sized bricklaying robot start-up raises $25 million

Monumental, founded by Salar al Khafaji and Sebastiaan Visser, also aims to grow its team of hardware and software engineers and increase the types of blocks and construction tasks that its robots can manage.

The pair are former founders of data visualisation firm Silk, which they sold in 2016.

Monumental said its construction robots are small, autonomous ground vehicles (AGVs) that can move around the rough terrain for a building site to help contractors address labour shortages and rising costs.

Fitted with sensors, computer vision, and small cranes, each robot can place bricks and mortar in industrial and residential walls with “human-level precision”, the company claimed. Each is powered by Monumental’s AI software Atrium and is small enough to go anywhere a human can.

The business aims to hire Monumental robots out to contractors as a subcontractor to reduce the financial risk of contractors having to buy and operate the machines.

Following pilot test cases in the Netherlands, Monumental completed its first large-scale, 15m facade for an office and warehouse building in 2023. It has since deployed its robots on several other projects, including social housing and has partnerships with multiple major general contractors.

Salar al Khafaji, co-founder and CEO at Monumental, said: “The construction industry is one of the largest and most important in the world, yet it’s held back by global labour shortages and rising supply chain costs.

“At Monumental, we’re working to help the industry meet these challenges. Our agile, intelligent, and adaptable robots and software blend human expertise with robotic efficiency in a way that the industry has never seen before. They will revolutionise not just how buildings are constructed but transform the economics of the construction industry itself. We’re delighted to have this stellar team of investors joining us on this mission.”

The start-up won funding from venture capital firms Plural and Hummingbird. Other angel investors including Northzone, Fundamental, and NP-Hard Ventures also participated.