Exyn Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ:EXYN), a physical AI company, has joined a national laboratory-led team supporting the Mining Autonomous Platform for Prospecting and Ore Discovery, or MAP-POD, project. The U.S. Department of Energy selected MAP-POD for award negotiations under its Mine of the Future Initiative, with Exyn expected to contribute autonomous navigation technology.

Exyn Joins DOE-Backed Mining Initiative

Exyn expects to contribute its ExynAI near-zero drift navigation technology for ground vehicle autonomy. The technology will support MAP-POD's underground mapping and mineral discovery capabilities. The DOE selected 17 national laboratory projects for a combined $29.5 million in funding. The initiative aims to strengthen U.S. mining, reduce dependence on foreign supply chains, and support national security and energy independence. MAP-POD will combine autonomous robotics, advanced sensing and artificial intelligence to map underground environments and identify minerals in real time.

ExynAI Targets GPS-Denied Mining Environments

Exyn designed its technology for environments where GPS is unavailable. ExynAI has achieved Level 4B autonomy. The technology enables aerial and ground robots to navigate, map, and collect data without prior maps or continuous human control. At Tüprag, Eldorado Gold's mining operation in Turkey, Exyn Nexys reduced survey capture times from about 40 minutes to about five minutes per scan. The MAP-POD project gives Exyn another opportunity to demonstrate its autonomy platform in complex underground environments while supporting its expansion into additional industries.

"Securing America's supply of critical minerals is a national priority, and our participation in this national laboratory-led project selected under the DOE's Mine of the Future Initiative represents an important opportunity to demonstrate ExynAI's capabilities," interim CEO and COO Ben Williams said.

"This project is closely aligned with the three pilot programs we are running to automate the digitization of complex physical environments across industries. We see each of them as a pathway to expand ExynAI into new commercial and government markets," Williams said.

Exyn Expands Into Government and Defense Markets

The DOE-backed project builds on Exyn's broader push into government and defense. The company has secured work with the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, while a U.S. government research organization selected its Nexys platform after a technical evaluation against other commercial LiDAR systems. Exyn has also been expanding ExynAI and Nexys across additional platforms. In August, the company partnered with UP Caeli Via to integrate the technology with the ARGOS aerial platform. In July, Exyn Defense began the Green UAS certification process for Nexys. The company said its autonomy platform can also support defense, construction, infrastructure, geospatial, industrial, and government applications.

EXYN Price Action: Exyn Technologies shares were down 2.04% at $1.92 during premarket trading on Monday, according to market data.