Designed to help small and medium-sized farms transition to sustainable farming systems, especially in the high-value crop and horticulture markets, AgriPass has completed a $7.5m seed funding round to accelerate the commercialisation of its Robot of Human Inspired Cultivation platform across the US and Europe.
It is designed to mimic human labour, reducing soil degradation caused by tillage, using specially designed weeding arms that operate vertically to destroy weeds while leaving 97% of the crop intact. According to CEO Liron Yanay, the system uses artificial intelligence (AI) to monitor camera feeds and differentiate between the crop and weed, as well as distinguish weed type, size and spacing, achieving a kill rate of 80-85%, with development aiming to get this to 95% in the future.
The unit is a self-propelled machine, capable of weeding 1ha/hour, the equivalent of about 20 workers. It is a single-bed unit that is light enough to be transported between fields with a pick-up and trailer, and is driven by a single operator. According to Ms Yanay, there are plans for a tractor-mounted version that will extend to 6m while using the same AI systems to automatically remove weeds.
Return on investment is said to between one and two seasons when the system replaces chemical use, increasing to about three seasons when used alongside chemical applications. The new funding will enable the company to move into markets, including the UK.
“We recognise the UK as a hugely important market,” Ms Yanay said. “There is a great demand for solutions that are better for the soil and that can reduce the cost of weed control. We are currently looking for partners who can support this product.”