Emesent has secured a A$2 million CRC-P grant from the Australian Government to develop and commercialise Cortex AI, an open, modular autonomy platform for GPS-denied and underground environments. The system is intended to plug into diverse robotic carriers and mining vehicles, providing navigation, mapping and autonomous operation in stopes, drives and other areas with no GNSS signal. For mine operators, this points to wider deployment of autonomous inspection and mapping workflows in complex voids without relying on proprietary, single-vendor platforms.

Xylem Inc is acquiring the Cornell Pump and Roper Pump businesses from Indicor for US$1.46 billion, adding established slurry, dewatering and process pump lines to its portfolio. The deal broadens Xylem’s coverage of mission-critical industrial duties, including abrasive and corrosive services common in hard‑rock mining, tailings handling and mine water management. By targeting sectors tied to infrastructure investment and industrial modernisation, Xylem is signalling continued capital allocation towards higher-growth mining and heavy industrial applications.

Cornish Lithium has secured a £7.2 million UK Government DRIVE35 grant to part-fund a £14.5 million drilling and testing programme at its Cross Lanes geothermal lithium project at Baldhu, near Truro in southwest England. The work will focus on deep geothermal brines, using test wells and flow testing to evaluate lithium concentrations, reservoir productivity and sustainable heat extraction. Results will determine the technical and economic viability of commercial-scale geothermal lithium production in Cornwall, with implications for well design, brine handling and direct lithium extraction process selection.