Editor’s note: Startland News editors selected 10 high-growth, scaling Kansas City companies to spotlight for its annual Startups to Watch project. Now in its 11th year, this feature recognizes founders and startups that editors believe will make some of the biggest, most compelling news in the coming 12 months. The following is one of 2026’s picks.
Click here to view the full list of Startups to Watch and see how the companies (including this one) were selected.
If you’ve ever watched a laborer haul rebar, fencing or concrete debris across a construction site, you’ve seen chronic back pain in the making, said Dietrich Kruse. His startup automates that grind — not by replacing workers, but by taking the wincing out of their work.
“The goal is just increasing the efficiency of that material-movement workflow,” the co-founder and CTO of Cyphra Autonomy said. “Make it more efficient and safer… They can stay at the site of the work rather than walking a hundred yards to pick up more material.”
Kruse and co-founder Sean Ward, both mechanical engineers, started with software — an app that made robotics control “stupid simple to use.” They soon realized their customers didn’t just need smarter code; they needed hardware that fit real job sites. The pair now builds and rents out autonomous rovers designed specifically for construction environments.
Each unit — priced at roughly $1,800 a month or $200 a day — competes with traditional concrete buggies but offers autonomous and RC control with minimal training. It’s a game-changer, Kruse said.
“We’ve trained people in less than five minutes,” he noted.
Elevator pitch: Cyphra Autonomy builds autonomous robotic haulers that make material movement on construction sites safer, faster and more efficient. Its robots are simple to operate and built to be man’s best friend on the job site.
- Founders: Sean Ward, Dietrich Kruse
- Headquarters: Kansas City, Missouri
- Founding year: 2024
- Current employee count: 3
- Funding amount raised to date: $450,000
- Noteworthy programs: Berkeley SkyDeck, Suffolk BOOST, Oregon UAS Accelerator, LaunchKC, Digital Sandbox KC
Cyphra’s fleet of five currently operates through a rental model, allowing the startup to upgrade quickly while keeping costs accessible for contractors. The company expects to double its fleet in 2026 as it secures more pilot projects and letters of intent from major builders.
The startup’s trajectory over the past 12 months reads like a crash course in scaling, Kruse said. After joining Berkeley SkyDeck in late 2024, Cyphra went from “vehicle in a crate, to landing on a big job site to a fully autonomous vehicle in eight weeks.”
Sean Ward pitches Cyphra Autonomy during a 2025 LaunchKC celebration at J. Rieger & Co.; photo by Tommy Felts, Startland News
Follow-on programs through Suffolk Technologies (Boost) and Black & Veatch (IgniteX) opened doors to large-scale sites — the kind of environments where testing new equipment is notoriously hard.
“It’s risky,” Kruse said. “If you run into something, you’re not coming back tomorrow. But through those partnerships, we’ve been able to show it works.”
Large construction projects — the ones that could use this tech — run on tight timelines that have to be met if the targeted profit is to be made. There’s little time for testing; these companies want to rent the equipment they know they need so their crews can get their work done on time.
But, Cyphra has persisted and has since been accepted into EllisDon’s accelerator and maintains a presence at Hensel Phelps’ Innovation Lab in Phoenix — a lineup that gives it rare visibility among national construction players.
For 2026, Cyphra’s R&D focus turns to its second-generation platform: modular chassis, higher payload capacity (up to 2,200 pounds), tracked mobility and interchangeable attachments for hauling varied materials. The company will also refine its mesh-networked software, which already allows multiple rovers to operate in tandem.
“The coolest thing is when we show it and say, ‘Press this button to have it follow you,’” Kruse said. “Next thing you know, that person’s teaching somebody else how to make it follow — and then you’ve got ten guys around it loading their stuff on. It’s so cool to see that moment on site.”
Cyphra Autonomy is in a crowded space in agriculture and logistics, but construction remains wide open.
The startup’s edge is simplicity — the ability for anyone on-site to use a robot without training or downtime, Kruse said. That, paired with its rental model and big-name partners, positions the startup as one of Kansas City’s most pragmatic bets in robotics.
10 Kansas City Startups to Watch in 2026
- Authentiya puts ethical AI to the test as students embrace controversial classroom tech
- CarePilot prescribes more patient time, fewer clicks for doctors as product line grows
- dScribe tracks early momentum with West Coast-Midwest funding combinator
- The Good Game connects young athletes with on-demand sports experts
- LAN Party gains steam with nostalgia as a hook, gaming enterprise potential as the real play
- LODAS Markets unlocks liquidity as timing pays off for founder’s investment
- Resonus wants local government to hear you — not just the loudest voices
- Roz uncovers dynamic momentum amid audit of its own shifting opportunities
- Sova Dating builds emotional matches with vibes, logistics and an unexpected viral moment
