Terra AI closes $20M from Khosla and BHP Ventures
Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios
Mining AI startup Terra AI closed a $20 million Series A led by Khosla Ventures and including the VC arm of mining giant BHP, CEO John Mern tells Axios Pro.
Why it matters: Investors are pouring money into next-gen mining tech and domestic projects to meet surging demand for critical minerals.
Zoom in: Terra AI plans to use the funds to hire, as well as develop products, for smaller mining firms known as junior miners.
- BHP Ventures invested $4 million in the round.
The intrigue: BHP Ventures invested following BHP successfully testing Terra AI's tech on a mining project late last year, says Mern, who co-founded the startup.
How it works: Terra AI's tech develops models for mining companies to better map underground resources and make development decisions.
- Mining firms can save money and time by using the models to better target drilling projects.
- The startup's models can also work with other technologies that use underground resources and drilling, including enhanced geothermal and carbon storage.
Catch up quick: Terra AI closed a $3.4 million seed round in late 2023 led by Khosla and including Rio Tinto, Storyhouse Ventures, Plug and Play, the TomKat Center for Sustainability, and Climate Capital.
- Mern was also the decision-science lead for mining startup KoBold Metals before co-founding Terra AI with Anthony Corso and Markus Zehcner.
The big picture: Soaring demand for minerals, supply chain restrictions, and low-cost AI have been driving investors to back mining startups.
- Copper and rare earth mining, in particular, have seen a rise in new startups and investment, as the demand for copper jumps and China restricts access to rare earth magnets.
- Copper is a key ingredient in wiring for data centers.
- Terra AI has primarily been focused on copper, "because that's what the market is demanding right now," Mern says.
What they're saying: "We're at the beginning of a long-term refocusing on mining in the U.S., and globally," Mern says.
