The U.S. Army has selected four companies — Caterpillar, Forterra, IDV USA, and Overland AI — to develop autonomous breaching robots under the Engineer Autonomous Breaching Capability (EABC) program, the Capability Program Executive Mission Autonomy announced today.
The selected contractors will deliver advanced robotic systems designed for beyond-line-of-sight autonomous control, with modular payloads to support a range of breaching requirements. The goal is to develop prototypes capable of rapidly breaching complex obstacles and minefields under direct observation and fire, reducing personnel exposure and ensuring safe passage for follow-on forces.
The four companies:
- Caterpillar (Irving, Texas) — the heavy equipment giant brings decades of experience in autonomous and semi-autonomous construction machinery
- Forterra (Clarksburg, Maryland) — autonomy systems developer specializing in ground vehicle self-driving technology
- IDV USA (York, Pennsylvania) — purpose-built robotic platforms for military applications
- Overland AI (Seattle) — ground autonomy specialist that demonstrated unmanned breaching capability during Project Convergence Capstone 5 in 2025, upgrading GDLS SMET vehicles with its OverDrive autonomy stack and SPARK hardware
The EABC award follows closely on the heels of CPE Mission Autonomy's Project Sustainment selection, which last week named five companies to develop medium-sized ground robots for logistics missions. Both efforts stem from Requests for Prototype Proposals issued in April 2026 through the National Advanced Mobility Consortium (NAMC).
Combat engineering is one of three initial focus areas for CPE Mission Autonomy, alongside agile sustainment and fires — priorities outlined earlier this year by Brig. Gen. Anthony Gibbs, who leads the office.
Formal contract awards are expected in the coming weeks. After prototyping and assessments, the Army plans a "transforming in contact" unit rotation in early 2027, allowing direct soldier feedback to inform a production decision.
Sources
- U.S. Army selects four contractors for Engineer Autonomous Breaching Capability — published 09 July 2026
- Army chooses four companies for autonomous breaching mission set — Inside Defense — published 08 July 2026
- Overland AI Demonstrates Full Stack Ground Autonomy for Uncrewed Breaching During Project Convergence Capstone 5 — published 03 June 2025