• DALE™, developed in collaboration with global mobile robotics leader August Robotics, honored among 1,000 applicants across more than 30 categories
• The groundbreaking robot was recognized for redefining data center construction by delivering concrete drilling with unmatched speed, safety, and efficiency to the world's hyperscalers
• DALE drills at speeds up to 10 times faster than traditional methods, reduced project timelines by more than 300 weeks across 44 data center construction phases, and achieved over 99% accuracy drilling more than 385,000 holes

DEWALT, a Stanley Black & Decker brand renowned for relentless innovation on the jobsite, announced that the world's first fleet-capable, downward drilling robot, DALE™, has been named a winner in Fast Company's 2026 Next Big Things in Tech Awards. The awards recognize innovative technologies developed by established companies, startups, and research teams that are making meaningful progress toward transforming the lives of consumers, businesses, and society. This year's innovations demonstrate the potential to create significant impact in the years ahead.

As the only tool manufacturer represented in the program, DALE was recognized in the "Enduring Impact: 15+ Years in Business" category honoring companies with an established track record of navigating history, culture, and evolving product lines to continue driving tomorrow's progress. 

After earning strong industry attention at World of Concrete earlier this year, the robot has entered the market as a breakthrough solution optimized for data center construction. As data center development accelerates at an unprecedented pace, rapid execution has become a key advantage for hyperscalers working to bring new computing capacity online. Designed to dramatically improve how concrete drilling is performed, DALE brings a new level of speed, safety, and operational efficiency to the jobsite. Its arrival marks a major step forward for the industry, raising the bar for innovation at a time when faster, smarter building methods are more critical than ever.

"It is incredibly meaningful to see this work acknowledged by Fast Company," said Bill Beck, President, Tools & Outdoor, Stanley Black & Decker. "Our teams set out to address a major challenge facing large scale infrastructure projects: how to help crews move faster without compromising consistency, safety, or control. This recognition reflects the strength of that effort and the value of bringing advanced automation to one of the most demanding construction environments. Working alongside August Robotics, we have introduced innovation that helps customers increase output, simplify execution, and better support the pace of modern building."

During the pilot program, the downward drilling robot achieved drilling speeds up to 10 times faster than conventional methods, helped reduce schedules by more than 300 weeks across 44 phases of data center construction, and delivered over 99% accuracy across more than 385,000 holes. With fast-swap batteries and remote monitoring, DALE™ is built to maximize uptime and support continuous drilling operations. Features such as automatic dust extraction and AI-driven quality assurance help leave sites clean and ready for immediate MEP installation, accelerating downstream work. Built on August Robotics' advanced autonomous, fleet-ready platform, DALE™ provides efficient, high-volume drilling for server rack stops and MEP supports, while strengthening DEWALT's broader data center offering alongside its PERFORM AND PROTECT™ tools and ICC anchoring solutions.