IMDEX: Perth’s ASX-Listed AI Mining Technology Company | Australian AI Profile
If Australia’s AI edge lies in applying machine intelligence to industries where it has deep expertise and unique data, IMDEX is one of the clearest examples of that thesis in action. The Perth-based, ASX-listed mining technology company has been quietly building AI-powered tools that analyse subsurface data from mining operations — helping the world’s miners find ore bodies faster, drill fewer holes, and operate more safely.
What They Do
IMDEX builds sensors, software, and cloud platforms that capture and analyse data from the physical process of drilling — the primary way miners find and assess ore deposits. Their instruments go down the drill hole and collect real-time data on rock structure, fluid chemistry, and geological formation. That data is then processed using AI and machine learning to give geologists and mine planners insights that would previously have taken weeks to derive manually.
Key products include BLASTDOG (AI-powered blast monitoring for surface mines), AMC Connector (real-time underground sensor networks), and ioGAS (geological data analysis software used by thousands of geoscientists globally). Their cloud platform, IMDEX Hub, centralises all this data and makes it accessible to remote teams — a capability that became critical during COVID when site visits weren’t possible.
Australia’s Unique Advantage
Australia holds some of the world’s most significant mineral deposits — iron ore, gold, lithium, copper, nickel — and has been systematically drilling and surveying them for decades. That geological data, accumulated over 50+ years, is the training ground for IMDEX’s AI models. The company’s tools aren’t built on generic datasets; they’re built on real drilling data from real Australian mines, which makes them more accurate in Australian geological conditions than any model trained on global averages.
This is the applied AI advantage Lee Hickin of the National AI Centre was describing: not frontier model building, but deep domain expertise combined with proprietary data that no offshore competitor can easily replicate.
Real-World Impact
IMDEX operates across more than 100 countries, serving major mining companies in Australia, the Americas, Africa, and Asia. Their technology is used on projects ranging from Pilbara iron ore to Andean copper. Revenue has grown to approximately $350 million AUD annually, with around 700 staff globally.
In practical terms, their AI tools reduce the number of drill holes required to define an ore body — a significant cost saving when a single drill hole can cost tens of thousands of dollars. They also improve safety by giving underground teams real-time visibility of ground conditions before workers enter an area.
What This Means for Australian SMBs
IMDEX is a B2B enterprise play, but the lesson for smaller businesses is universal: the companies building durable AI advantages are doing so by combining proprietary operational data with domain expertise, not by chasing the latest general-purpose model. If your business generates operational data — from equipment, customers, or processes — that data may be more valuable than you think when combined with the right AI tools.
Sources and Further Reading
Related: Australia’s AI Edge: The Counter-Argument | Australia’s Real AI Edge: Applied AI in Agriculture, Mining, and Healthcare
This profile is part of SmallBizAI.au’s guide to Australian AI companies by industry.
