Advanced Farm Technologies

Based in Davis, California, Advanced Farm Technologies, Inc. operates at the intersection of robotics and agriculture. The company was established in 2017 by Kyle Cobb, who serves as the President & CEO. Cobb, along with a core team, brings a long history of collaboration, having worked together on various ventures for over two decades before entering the agricultural technology space. This prior experience in building and scaling businesses has been pivotal in navigating the complexities of developing robotic solutions for farming.

The company's primary focus is on automating crop harvesting, a critical area in agriculture facing persistent labor shortages. Advanced Farm Technologies addresses this challenge directly with its robotic strawberry harvester, the TX Robotic Strawberry Harvester. This machine is designed to gently pick fresh market strawberries, a task that traditionally requires significant manual labor. The business model operates on a robotics-as-a-service (RaaS) basis, where the company deploys and maintains the robotic fleets for its clients, charging them per-box-picked. This approach allows growers to adopt advanced automation without a substantial upfront capital investment, instead paying for the service as they use it. Clients are primarily large-scale strawberry growers in high-yield regions like California and the United Kingdom.

The TX harvester utilizes a sophisticated combination of computer vision, machine learning, and robotic arms to identify and pick ripe strawberries without bruising them. It features multiple robotic arms that work in concert to harvest the fruit, which is then placed onto a conveyor system. A key feature is its ability to operate in various conditions, including day and night, and its rugged design ensures it can handle the demands of a farm environment. The company has secured significant funding to support its growth and technological development. Notable funding rounds include a $7.5 million Series A in 2019, a $25 million Series B in 2021 led by Yamaha Motor Corp., and a strategic investment from Kubota Corporation in 2023.

Keywords: agricultural robotics, strawberry harvesting, robotics-as-a-service, agtech, automated farming, computer vision, farm automation, specialty crops, agricultural labor, precision agriculture