What's Your Problem? Could Autonomous Diggers Unleash a Building Boom?
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Oct 2, 2025 Boris Sofman, co-founder and CEO of Bedrock Robotics and former Waymo engineer, dives into the future of construction with autonomous diggers. He shares insights on how machine learning from autonomous vehicles is revolutionizing heavy machinery. Boris discusses the labor shortage in the construction industry, explaining how autonomy could boost building capacity. He highlights the unique challenges of teaching machines to dig while addressing safety concerns at construction sites, and also reflects on his journey from the Soviet Union to leading innovation in robotics.
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Data-Driven Autonomy Scales Faster
- Waymo's shift to data-driven, machine-learning autonomy unlocked rapid scaling across cities.
- Large-scale data lets models generalize from hundreds to millions of driverless miles.
Construction Is A Different Autonomy Problem
- Construction machines are slower, operate on closed sites, and interact physically with the world, making autonomy different from road driving.
- Those features reduce complexity for safety and open new ways to measure competence directly.
Labor Shortage Is A Rate-Limiting Factor
- Excavator operators are in short supply and turnover is high, creating a major labor bottleneck for construction.
- Automating these machines could unlock growth across housing, data centers, and energy by easing that constraint.