Durin is developing drilling rigs outfitted with sensors and automation to reduce the labor and cost of minerals exploration. The company started designing its first rig earlier this year; the prototype can bore about 300 meters deep and 2.5 inches wide. That rig is currently manually operated but instrumented to gather data for future automation models. Durin is also building an automatic pipe-loading contraption to remove manual tasks on site. The startup has embarked on its first drilling program and expects to have enough data by the end of the year to begin building its automation model. Founder and CEO Ted Feldmann, who grew up in a mining family, aims to cut the labor-intensive portion of exploration — drilling consumes roughly 70% of exploration capital and labor represents about 60% of drillers' costs — and anticipates rigs could run unattended in two to three years.

Total raised

$3M

Funding rounds

1

Latest round

Seed

Latest activity

Apr 2025