Dive Brief:
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Bonsai Robotics announced a $13.5 million funding round as the startup accelerates production of its vision-based automation tool for nut orchards.
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The round of seed funding was led by Acre Venture Partners and included a number of angel investors. Bonsai said the money will be used to invest in hiring, sales and marketing.
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Bonsai’s technology allows farmers to operate shakers, sprayers and other heavy machinery from their phones by linking up their agriculture equipment. The startup conducted trials with several California tree nut growers earlier this year and has forged relationships with Orchard Machinery Corporation and Flory Industries.
Dive Insight:
As farmers struggle with labor issues, increased prices and environmental pressures, agriculture companies are developing innovative products to address those concerns.
Bonsai, founded in 2022, is focused on autonomous robotics that improve upon GPS-based computer vision systems that are often unreliable in the field. Using artificial intelligence models and computer-vision software, Bonsai’s tech allows farmers to operate their equipment without GPS in adverse conditions that have dust, debris or heavy vibration, the company said.
“To date, GPS-based computer vision systems have failed in harvest conditions, meaning all machinery had to be operated by humans,” Ugur Oezdemir, co-founder of Bonsai, said in a statement. “We did it through state-of-the-art 3D vision techniques using standard, durable automotive cameras to keep the cost down.”
The startup said its software leverages AI Simultaneous Localization and Mapping technology built using a data set of tens of thousands of acres. Bonsai can operate in adverse conditions and integrate with many different machines used in an orchard.
Participants in Bonsai’s latest round of seed funding included E14, Congruent, Serra Ventures, Fall Line Capital, SNR Ventures and Andros. Cobalt Robotics Founder Travis Deyle, Blue River Tech Founder Lee Redden and Plenty Founder Matt Barnard were among angel investors.
Earlier this year, Bonsai tested its technology on a number of tree nut orchards in California.
Ceil Howe, at Pomona Farming, said the results allowed the company to harvest faster than using traditional shakers alone.
“This is the most transformative technology I’ve seen in ag tech since the advent of GPS - it will redefine how we approach orchard management and harvesting,” Howe said in a statement.
Other startups are racing to develop innovative technologies with the goal of improving farmer yields and reducing operational costs. Seattle-based Aigen, founded by a former Tesla engineer, introduced a renewable energy-powered, autonomous robot that weeds row crops over the summer.
