Backing home‑grown capabilities to keep missions on course.
The Australian Government established National Reconstruction Fund Corporation (NRFC) is investing in Advanced Navigation as part of a $158 million Series C funding round that values the company at more than $1 billion.
NRFC's $50 million funding backs the next generation of positioning and navigation systems designed for increasingly complex missions — from underground mines and rough seas to space endeavours.
Advanced Navigation builds autonomous navigation systems that work when satellite Global Positioning System (GPS) signals are unreliable or unavailable — including in remote environments on Earth and even on the Moon.
Strengthening Aussie capabilities for Earth and space
At the heart of the company’s technology is artificial intelligence‑based inertial navigation systems (INS). A capability which blends robotics, AI, and high‑precision sensing to deliver accurate Positioning, Navigation and Timing (PNT) without relying on a constant GPS signal.
This novel capability matters far beyond space. It can improve safety and productivity across mining, defence, aerospace, agriculture and marine — sectors where Australia already competes globally.
The NRFC investment will strengthen national manufacturing by expanding the design and production of Advanced Navigation’s hardware and software in Australia.
It will also help commercialise Australian‑developed intellectual property at home and in international markets — turning local research into products, growing high‑skill jobs and building resilience across supply chains.
“Turning Australian research into commercial products is key to building a more diverse and resilient Australian economy.
"Using technology developed across Australia, with research hubs in Newcastle, Western Australia, Sydney, and Canberra, Advanced Navigation uses robotics, AI and high-precision sensing to improve navigation in the mining, defence, aerospace, automative and agricultural sectors – solving uniquely Australian problems with uniquely Australian solutions.
"The NRF’s $50 million investment is expected to create 172 new roles across engineering, robotics, high-tech manufacturing, photonics, operations and technical sales – building a Future Made in Australia.”
~ Senator the Hon Tim Ayres, Minister for Industry and Innovation and Minister for Science
Australian ingenuity showing the way
“NRFC’s investment in Advanced Navigation will keep the company’s headquarters, core R&D, and high-precision manufacturing capabilities here in Australia, building our sovereign and defensive capabilities and paving the way for the navigational tools of the future.”
~ NRFC CEO David Gall
The Australian Space Agency was an early investor into the company's INS technology in 2023. Through its Moon to Mars initiative, the Agency supported with the development of Boreas X90, an artificial intelligence backed capability that space exploration vehicles use to autonomously guide themselves. Since then, the Agency has also invested in the company's LUNA laser velocity sensor, which enables laser-guided precision landings on the Moon.
“The era of relying on a single silver bullet for navigation is over. Across defence, energy transition, humanitarian response, and autonomous missions, certainty is required where GPS can no longer be trusted.
“The future belongs to intelligent systems that can sense, adapt, and navigate independently."
~ CEO and Co-founder, Advanced Navigation Chris Shaw.
Advanced Navigation plans to use the new capital it has raised, aside from the NRFC grants, to:
- Accelerate the development of sensors that can work independent of GPS.
- Establish PNT Centers of Excellence across the US and Europe to fortify its supply chain and to provide on-the-ground support.
Main image: Chris Shaw, CEO and Co-founder of Advanced Navigation with a miniaturised inertial system.
Credit: Advanced Navigation
LUNA Laser Velocity Sensor
Advanced Navigation also partnered with Intuitive Machines to deploy its LUNA module on a future Moon-landing
