What Terranova does

Terranova is a US-based infrastructure company that uses autonomous heavy robotics to lift and stabilize flood-prone land through subsurface injection of a wood slurry. The platform combines a mothership system, the Ark, that processes biomass into slurry and pumps it to a fleet of three injection robots (Atlas, Prometheus, and Vulcan) operating up to 500 feet away, with AI/ML reasoning models that design injection campaigns and closed-loop control software that drives the semi-autonomous rovers to achieve a desired surface topology. A site suitability predictor uses soil composition and flood-risk data to qualify projects in advance. Target use cases span development, wetlands, communities, infrastructure, defense, and mining.

The company sells project-based elevation services to enterprise and government buyers under quote-based, multi-year project contracts rather than subscription or per-seat pricing. A self-serve project planner at plan.terranova.inc supports inbound lead capture, while a categorized 'Partner with Us' contact form drives direct enterprise and government sales. The company states that its approach is roughly an order of magnitude cheaper than traditional levees or seawalls at scale and materially faster (2-8 weeks versus 6-36 months), with a publicly referenced $92M price point to lift 240 acres by 4 feet in a representative San Rafael deployment.

Terranova emerged from stealth on November 10, 2025, alongside a $7 million Seed round co-led by Outlander and Congruent Ventures, with participation from GoAhead Ventures, Gothams, and Ponderosa (a Galvanize Climate fund). The round closed three times oversubscribed and is earmarked for first commercial projects, full-scale robot production, and engineering and field team expansion. The Ark is Build America, Buy America compliant, positioning the system for US public infrastructure spending. The company is headquartered in San Francisco (with Berkeley, California referenced in early press datelines) and is led by CEO Laurence Allen and Chairman Trip Allen.

Name

Terranova

Legal name

Terranova, Inc.

Website

https://terranova.inc

Company type

Private

Founded year

2025

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Terranova uses autonomous heavy robotics and AI-designed injection campaigns to lift and stabilize flood-prone land via subsurface wood-slurry injection, serving enterprise, government, and infrastructure buyers in the United States.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Berkeley

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Terraforming Project Services: Primary revenue stream derived from contracted elevation/land-stabilization projects using the Ark + robot fleet. Pricing is project-based rather than subscription or seat-based. The $7M seed round will be used to begin first projects and reach full-scale robot production.
2. Robot System Sales / Hardware Deployment: Future revenue stream from producing and deploying the Ark + Atlas/Prometheus/Vulcan robot systems at customer sites; described in the funding release as the company moving to 'full-scale production of its robot systems.'

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Terranova sells and delivers contracted land elevation and land stabilization projects using a vertically integrated terraforming robotics platform. The platform centers on the Ark mothership — which processes biomass into wood slurry and coordinates a fleet of autonomous injection rovers (Atlas, Prometheus, Vulcan) — to permanently lift flood-prone terrain through subsurface injection with minimal surface disturbance. AI/ML models design the injection campaigns and drive closed-loop control of the rovers to hit a target surface topology, and customers scope projects through a self-serve online planner.

Product overview

Terranova offers a single integrated terraforming robotics platform rather than standalone products. The platform centers on the Ark mothership — which performs slurry creation and command-and-control — and is paired with a fleet of three autonomous injection robots (Atlas, Prometheus, and Vulcan) that inject a wood slurry deep underground to permanently lift and stabilize flood-prone terrain. An AI/ML technology stack layers on top: a site suitability predictor (soil composition + flood risk), reasoning models that design injection campaigns, and closed-loop control of the semi-autonomous rovers to hit a target surface topology. Customers can scope projects via the self-service plan.terranova.inc tool, and the system targets development, wetlands, communities, infrastructure, defense, and mining use cases.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Terranova Terraforming Robotics Platform (Ark + Atlas + Prometheus + Vulcan) Integrated terraforming robotics platform sold and delivered as a contracted project. The Ark processes biomass into wood slurry and pumps it up to 500 ft to three autonomous injection rovers (Atlas, Prometheus, Vulcan) that perform subsurface injection to permanently lift and stabilize flood-prone terrain. The system is sized to lift one acre by one foot per day, is Build America, Buy America compliant, and is paired with AI/ML campaign design and closed-loop rover control. Targeted at enterprise and government infrastructure, real-estate development, defense, mining, and community flood-mitigation buyers in the United States.
• plan.terranova.inc Self-Service Project Planner Online self-service planning tool that lets prospective customers scope a terraforming project (site, area, lift target) before engaging sales, capturing mid-funnel demand for the robotics platform.

Quantifiable outcome

• Lifts up to 1 acre by 1 foot per day using a 3-robot + 1 Ark fleet
• +4 more outcomes

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

AI capability5 records

Feature8 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Starlink (SpaceX)core infrastructure dependencyTechnology or IntegrationStarlink satellite connectivity is integrated into the Ark mothership system to enable remote operations anywhere in the world.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights7 records

Direct peers

• Bedrock (formerly Built Robotics): Autonomous heavy-equipment robotics company retrofitting and operating excavators, dozers, and other heavy machinery for construction and infrastructure. Most directly comparable to Terranova in that it sells autonomous heavy-robot hardware + software to large infrastructure, development, and government buyers — the same target customer and capital-intensive model Terranova is pursuing.
• ICON: Robotics-driven construction technology company using large robotic systems (including 3D printers) to build homes and structures. Comparable to Terranova as a robotics-first construction/climate infrastructure company pursuing federal and developer customers with a vertically integrated hardware + software stack.

Broad incumbents

• Caterpillar Inc. World's largest heavy equipment OEM with a deep footprint in earthworks, site preparation, and the autonomous/connected Cat Command for dozing and mining product lines. Comparable as a broad incumbent supplying the heavy machinery and autonomy that any large-scale terraforming or flood-mitigation project will use or compete with.
• Komatsu Ltd. Global heavy equipment manufacturer with its own Smart Construction and autonomous mining/earthworks portfolio (including AHS for autonomous haulage). Comparable as a broad incumbent whose autonomy, fleet-management software, and earthmoving equipment define the competitive ceiling for any autonomous terrain-modification startup.
• Boston Dynamics: Developer of advanced mobile robots (Spot, Stretch, Atlas) targeting industrial, logistics, and inspection use cases. Comparable as a heavy-mobile-robotics incumbent whose AI/ML stack for autonomous operation overlaps with Terranova's closed-loop rover control and whose industrial and defense customer base overlaps with Terranova's defense and infrastructure segments.
• Trimble Inc. Provider of software, hardware, and services for civil engineering, construction, and geospatial workflows, including machine control and site-suitability analytics. Comparable as a broad incumbent whose civil/survey software stack (and emerging autonomy features) competes with the software layer of Terranova's offering (site suitability, injection campaign design, closed-loop control).
• AECOM: Global infrastructure consulting and construction firm with a large water, coastal, and climate-resilience practice that designs and builds levees, seawalls, and flood-mitigation projects. Comparable as the incumbent prime contractor and engineering services firm whose project economics Terranova is attempting to undercut.

Emerging players

• FBR (Hadrian X): Australian construction-robotics company commercializing the Hadrian X bricklaying robot. Comparable as an early-stage, capital-intensive construction-robotics company with a similar 'robot system + on-site execution' business model and a comparable path of moving from prototype to commercial deployment in heavy, regulated end markets.
• Canvas: Construction-robotics startup building robotic systems for finishing tasks (drywall, painting) on active job sites. Comparable as a peer emerging robotics startup tackling on-site, semi-structured tasks with AI/ML-enabled mobile robots and selling to enterprise general contractors — adjacent to Terranova's site-deployment model.

Regional players

• AquaFence: Provider of modular, rapidly deployable flood-barrier systems (primarily deployed in Europe and the US). Comparable as a regional/adjacent player offering a non-permanent, fast-deployable alternative to levees and seawalls — competing for the same budget dollars and the same customer (urban floodplain operators) that Terranova is targeting with its terrain-lift approach.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/watch?v=B4RQvgdC1TI&t=237s

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors5 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Terranova