Hitachi Construction Machinery Challenge 2024 Crowns Three Startups as Winners
Last week, we shared the news about the Hitachi Construction Machinery Challenge. This week, we’re back to share the winners. Let’s go!
The Event
The inaugural Hitachi Construction Machinery Challenge 2024 pitch event — hosted by Hitachi Construction Machinery Co., Ltd. and Hitachi Construction Machinery Americas Inc. — was held on November 20 at the Americas regional headquarters. It attracted 127 startups to submit proposals that fit within three themes: Construction Planning; Revolutionize Equipment: Information, Interface & Autonomy; and Transform Fleet Management.
Nine of those startups then pitched their ideas to a panel of judges which included, Cutler Knupp, Haskell (Dysruptek) VP Strategy & Technology Investment (Managing Director), Kaustubh Pandya, Brick & Mortar Ventures Partner, and Satish Padmanabhan, DIMAAG-AI CEO. An audience made up of startup CEOs, venture capitalists and executives listened on.
From the press release:
Hitachi Construction Machinery is traditionally known as a company that provides mechanical items, but we are pivoting to also being a true technological solutions provider. For us, that means collaborating with innovative startups,” says Masahiro Yamada, Hitachi Construction Machinery Vice President of the New Business Creation Unit. “This event is very important to us because it will show the world that Hitachi Construction Machinery is more than just excavators, wheel loaders, and mining trucks. We are also a technology company that listens to their customers’ needs and provides wholistic solutions.
The Winners
Out of those nine startups, Sodex Innovations, Teleo, and Veristart Technologies were crowned the winners. The three will join the Hitachi Construction Machinery exhibition area at bauma 2025, as well as explore the possibility of collaboration with the Hitachi Construction Machinery Group.
Sodex Innovations was the winner of the “Construction Planning” theme. Its products equip machines with a system to capture terrain in real time — allowing jobsites to keep track of their progress and report on it without the need to stop for a survey.
The winning solution from Sodex Innovations creates digital twins of construction sites by equipping machines with laser scanners and cameras — turning a machine operator into a surveyor.
Here’s what Ralf Pfefferkorn, Sodex Innovations CEO and co-founder, had to say:
The ability to move on with Hitachi Construction Machinery means a lot for us because the possibility of giving Hitachi machinery more eyes will make them more attractive,” said Pfefferkorn. “At bauma 2025, we are hoping to show attendees a great solution that they have never seen before on a construction machine. We are from Austria so we are excited to show our German neighbors some really cool technology on amazing machinery.
Teleo walked away the winner of the “Revolutionize Equipment: Information, Interface & Autonomy” theme. According to the event’s press release, Teleo’s supervised autonomous machine is a brand-agnostic solution that allows operators to operate multiple machines simultaneously from an office-like environment.
Teleo vice president of sales, Mark Piotto, discussed the award:
This is a tremendous opportunity for us to work with a global leader like Hitachi Construction Machinery. We hope to work together to develop products and solutions that are going to innovate the construction and mining industries,” said Piotto. “We want to focus on the operator experience and what the next generation of operators will be. Artificial intelligence and Large Language Models have made an impact in the world and we are excited to leverage that technology to help operators do their job.
Veristart Technologies was the winner of the “Transform Fleet Management” theme. Its winning solution is targeted at preventing machinery theft by providing fleet managers with better control of their machines. During the presentation, the startup described its product as a cloud application, a mobile application and a hardware device that works together to give fleet managers precise control over who can operate their fleet. With the solution, machine operators receive an electronic key on their smartphone that allows them to start the vehicle.
When discussing the event and award, Craig Hannam, Veristart Technologies CEO and co-founder, said:
We are adding control to heavy machinery equipment. We want to make sure that when an operator is operating a machine they are both authorized and properly trained to use. This win is huge for us. To have a partner like Hitachi Construction Machinery at this early stage in our startup is amazing. At bauma 2025 we are excited to show attendees our prototype and the evolution of the solution.
What’s Next
It sounds like this inaugural event was just the beginning for Hitachi Construction Machinery. According to its press release, the company plans to continue engaging in open innovation with startups and aim to incorporate these innovations into our solutions at all points of contact with its customers. Hitachi Construction Machinery has also been working on open technology and product development through investments and collaboration in venture capital funds and startups. Stay tuned.
Pam Kleineke is managing editor of Compact Equipment.
