Advanced Navigation has secured £83 million in Series C funding to fast-track the development of navigation systems designed to operate where GPS fails, particularly in underground mining environments.
The funding round was led by Airtree Ventures, with participation from Quadrant Private Equity and National Reconstruction Fund Corporation.
The investment comes amid rising global demand for alternative Positioning, Navigation and Timing technologies as industries confront the limits of GPS in high-risk and infrastructure-denied environments.
Underground mining remains one of the most affected sectors. Once vehicles enter tunnels, GPS signals are lost, leaving operators without reliable positioning data. This often results in halted operations, increased downtime and higher operational costs.
Advanced Navigation said the new capital will accelerate the development of autonomous sensor systems capable of navigating independently without satellite signals. The company is also scaling its “hard tech” approach to improve precision and performance across mining trucks, rail systems and autonomous haulage platforms.
The firm recently launched Chimera Land, a 3D laser velocity sensor designed to deliver accurate positioning in deep underground mines, marking a step closer to fully autonomous mining operations.
Chris Shaw, chief executive officer and co-founder of Advanced Navigation, said the global reliance on GPS had become a growing vulnerability.
He said autonomous systems operating across land, sea, air, and space now require resilient navigation technologies that can operate in unpredictable, signal-denied environments.
The company’s technology combines high-precision inertial hardware with artificial intelligence-driven software to continuously interpret and verify positioning data in real time.
With more than 100,000 systems already deployed globally, Advanced Navigation is expanding its footprint across Europe and the United States, where it generates the bulk of its revenue.
As part of its growth strategy, the company plans to establish specialised PNT centres of excellence across key markets. These hubs will support engineering, strengthen supply chains and deepen local partnerships in mission-critical industries.
Industry analysts say the move reflects a broader shift as governments and corporations seek alternatives to GPS amid concerns over signal disruption, spoofing and electronic warfare threats.
Advanced Navigation counts major global players such as BHP, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and Rheinmetall among its partners.
The latest funding positions the company to scale its technology across sectors, including mining, defence, robotics and space systems, as the push for fully autonomous operations gathers pace.
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