Robots that build with earth.
We’re developing modular robots for earthworks and landscaping, and the tools to design and build them.
Walls are a first test case. Gardens are a much more interesting design space. The goal is to build capabilities in a modular way, until they can be combined for more ambitious projects.
Why this work
Working with earth is incredibly labor intensive. Because of this, we settle for things like an empty green lawn.
Making professional landscaping inexpensive would open up much more room for creativity. This is a place where automation and intelligence can translate directly to beauty.
From simulation to hardware
The latest AI models have gotten good enough to work with CAD and simulation. Pairing with them is a matter of setting direction: choosing between mechanisms, weighing trade-offs, and pointing to specific risks.
Peristyle brings together CAD, simulation, tests, and the instructions needed to build a machine. Building an actual prototype has taught us where to trust the model, where to make revisions, and which questions to test next.
Where we are
The first prototype is a small excavator that scoops, lifts, and dumps material. Its design was almost entirely worked out by a model, with loose direction and feedback from physical experiments.
It is one of three machines intended to work together to build a small proof-of-concept wall. Planning and execution are earlier in their development. There is still a lot to prove there.
Working with soil has also made the importance of surveying and probing much clearer. There is a wide variation between materials; understanding a site is part of designing the machines for it.
Robots as a Service
The direction is to offer the work as a service. We would operate and maintain the robots, adding machines when a site needs heavy work and scaling back during maintenance.
Modularity lets us reuse a chassis, swap specialized tools, and refine designs at low cost. For ongoing work like tending a garden, robots would stay on site.
Have a project in mind?
Have a garden or landscape project that could benefit from automation? I’d love to hear what you’re working on.