At CES 2026, NVIDIA and Caterpillar announced on January 7th, 2026 an expanded collaboration focused on embedding artificial intelligence directly into construction equipment, jobsite operations, and manufacturing systems. The companies described platform integration and system design as the principal outcomes of this effort rather than presenting a single product announcement. These disclosures reflect Caterpillar’s ongoing strategy to apply automation and AI across heavy equipment fleets, mining operations, and factory environments.
Above: A Photo of NVIDIA Vice President of Robotics and EDGE, AI Deepu Talla, and Caterpillar CEO, Joe Creed during Caterpillar's CES 2026 Keynote. Photo by David Aughinbaugh II for CircuitRoute.
Edge AI at the Jobsite
At the center of the CES demonstration was Caterpillar’s use of NVIDIA’s Jetson Thor edge AI platform to run inference workloads on construction equipment. According to NVIDIA, Jetson Thor is intended to support real-time perception, decision support, and human-machine interaction without reliance on continuous cloud connectivity.
In the CES setup described by NVIDIA, edge systems on Caterpillar machines processed sensor data locally and supported natural-language interaction through NVIDIA Riva speech models. NVIDIA also referenced the use of a compact large language model to enable conversational assistance for operators, though neither company disclosed performance characteristics or validation metrics for these workloads.
Caterpillar stated that its Helios data platform supplies machine state, operational history, and jobsite data that can be surfaced through AI-assisted interfaces. Together, these components constitute an architecture that combines local inference with trusted operational data while maintaining low latency and system autonomy in field environments.
In-Cab Assistance and Safety Context
At CES, the companies described in-cab AI assistance for equipment operators. NVIDIA and Caterpillar outlined use cases that include operational guidance, contextual alerts, and situational awareness tools designed to function within the constraints of active jobsites.
The systems presented were described as operating locally at the edge, with functionality maintained in scenarios where network connectivity is limited or unavailable. The announcements did not include quantitative data regarding safety improvements, productivity gains, or operator performance outcomes associated with the demonstrated features.
Above: A photo of Caterpillar's Cat 306 CR Mini Excavator on display using NVIDIA's Jetson Thor physical AI platform. Photo by David Aughinbaugh II for CircuitRoute.
Fleet-Level and Autonomy Alignment
Beyond individual machines, Caterpillar framed the NVIDIA collaboration as part of a broader effort to scale AI across fleet-level operations, aligning with its existing autonomy and automation strategy in construction and mining.
NVIDIA did not announce specific deployment timelines for autonomous equipment tied to the collaboration, nor did either company identify customers or sites where the CES demonstrated systems are scheduled for production rollout. The partnership was presented as an architectural and platform alignment rather than a near-term product availability announcement.
Manufacturing, Simulation, and Digital Twins
In addition to field equipment, Caterpillar stated that it is using NVIDIA technologies to modernize manufacturing and supply-chain operations. Caterpillar described the use of NVIDIA AI frameworks and simulation tools to build digital twins of factory environments, enabling simulation and planning of production workflows.
Caterpillar referenced NVIDIA Omniverse and OpenUSD as part of this effort. As with the jobsite applications, the companies did not disclose performance benchmarks or quantified operational gains resulting from these initiatives.
Workforce and Ecosystem Commitments
Alongside the technical collaboration, Caterpillar announced a five-year, $25 million commitment to workforce development, training programs, and an innovation challenge focused on AI and digital skills. The company framed this initiative as part of a broader transition toward software-enabled equipment and data-driven operations.
Neither company tied the workforce initiative to specific hiring targets or productivity metrics. Caterpillar stated that the program is intended to support long-term skills development rather than immediate operational changes.
Disclosure and Context
In their CES 2026 announcements, NVIDIA and Caterpillar emphasized system integration over finished product offerings. Financial terms, confirmed customers, benchmark results, and production timelines were not provided.
The NVIDIA-Caterpillar collaboration reflects an effort to adapt AI platforms developed for data center and edge environments to industrial settings with reliability, safety and autonomy requirements.