Following the machines, people and ideas shaping agriculture. Selected developments, clear context and a link to the original source.
Robotics. Intelligence. Agriculture.
AgXeed’s November 2025 announcement introduced the diesel-electric AgBot T2 7 Series, pairing a tracked 230 hp platform with implement monitoring, route planning and autonomous operation inside defined field boundaries.
Norwegian company Kilter reported that 54 AX-1 robots treated 4,265 hectares during part of 2026, comparing their targeted applications with a 250-litre-per-hectare broadcast baseline to quantify avoided spray mixture.
A Japanese study published in April 2026 describes a legged carrier with interchangeable baskets and voice commands, designed to reduce the physical burden of moving fruit in challenging orchards.
The University of Canterbury reported camera-based reconstruction of orchard and vineyard plants in July 2026, with testing across commercial farms and a planned HoloCrop spinout for precision horticulture.
Washington State University reported a gentle apple-gripping design in June 2024, taking inspiration from human picking and planning its integration with a lower-cost robotic arm and vision system.
Purdue researchers linked LeafSpec imaging with a two-arm laboratory system in June 2024, using tactile feedback to steady corn plants and guide a scanner along their leaves.
A June 2024 Stellenbosch University feature describes the Dassie vineyard prototype and Carlos Poblete-Echeverría’s digital-agriculture research, linking mobile measurements to more detailed information about individual vines.
ETH Zurich highlighted a July 2024 award for research on planning autonomous routes through orchards and vineyards, developed within the Lonomy programme and building on earlier agricultural robotics work.
QUT announced a five-year, A$41 million programme in August 2024 to develop orchard varieties suited to efficient production, combining plant genetics, crop architecture and robotic observation.
JKUAT’s October 2024 Robotics Dojo showcase focused on laser-sensor navigation, building local engineering skills relevant to future agricultural machines while remaining an educational prototype competition.
A University of Essex prototype was trialled with Wilkin & Sons in 2024, exploring affordable robotic strawberry handling and a workflow that continues beyond detaching fruit from the plant.
Ce Yang’s University of Minnesota laboratory presented a small quadruped prototype in October 2024, exploring how legged mobility could support wheat disease phenotyping where other observation platforms struggle.
