Caterpillar CEO Joe Creed demonstrates the Cat AI assistant, discusses the impact of tariffs and lays out his 2026 strategy in ‘The Claman Countdown’.
Construction equipment giant Caterpillar has unveiled a new artificial intelligence (AI) tool designed to improve workplace safety and increase efficiency as the industry struggles with labor shortages.
“Some of the things I hear when I talk to customers are, ‘Hey, we have a shortage of operators and we have new operators who are not skilled and experienced, so the training time is very difficult,’” Creed said. “And then, most importantly, safety. So the Cat AI Assistant helps address all of these issues.
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Joe Creed, CEO of Caterpillar Inc., speaks during the 2026 CES event in Las Vegas on January 7, 2026. (Bridget Bennett/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
“It’s essentially a personal assistant for an operator in the cab or a technician who wants to repair the machine.”
Powered by NVIDIA’s Riva voice models, Cat AI Assistant allows operators to ask questions in real time and receive customized recommendations regarding equipment operation, parts and maintenance, Caterpillar said.
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The Cat AI Assistant interface was showcased at the Caterpillar booth at the 2026 CES event in Las Vegas on January 7, 2026. (Bridget Bennett/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
“So these are power lines that you would see on a construction site,” Creed said. “That’s a challenge for our customers. So it’s a safety issue when the boom comes. It can also delay the job for days or weeks.”
Using voice commands, operators can ask the AI assistant about available safety features and set height limits that prevent an excavator’s boom from rising too high, so crews can avoid contact with power lines.
The technology can also identify people at job sites and keep them out of harm’s way, Creed said.
“The Cat AI Assistant, combined with autonomy and autonomous systems that we can now use at the edge thanks to our partnership with NVIDIA, is really just a game changer when it comes to recognition, safety, keeping people safe and making sure they return home to their families,” he said.
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A view of a Caterpillar excavator at CES 2026 on January 6, 2026 at the Las Vegas Convention Center. (Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu via Getty Images)
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At CES 2026, Creed also took the keynote stage to showcase how artificial intelligence is shaping the next generation of heavy equipment.
Caterpillar and NVIDIA have announced an expanded collaboration aimed at accelerating the use of AI on machines and manufacturing systems, according to the construction company’s website.
