FarmWise

FarmWise Labs, Inc.

Company type	Private
Industry	Agricultural technology, Robotics
Founded	2016 (2016)
Founder	Sebastien Boyer, Thomas Palomares
Headquarters	California , United States
Products	Titan FT-35 autonomous mechanical weeder

FarmWise Labs, Inc. is an American agtech and robotics enterprise established in 2016, with its headquarters located in California. Its premier product, the Titan FT-35, is an autonomous mechanical weeding machine that utilizes artificial intelligence, computer vision, and robotic technology to eliminate weeds from vegetable crops without relying on herbicides. The firm has earned several innovation accolades for its advancements in sustainable agriculture.

History

Founded in 2016 in San Francisco by Sebastien Boyer—an alumnus of École Polytechnique and Massachusetts Institute of Technology—and Thomas Palomares, who graduated from École Polytechnique and Stanford University, FarmWise began its journey with an initial prototype of a robotic weeder. That year, the founders engaged in The Alchemist Accelerator and the THRIVE accelerator program by SVG.

In December 2017, FarmWise secured $5.7 million in a seed financing round from investors such as Playground Global, Felicis Ventures, Lemnos, Basis Set Ventures, and Valley Oak Investments. Subsequently, Bruce Leak from Playground joined the company's board of directors.

By 2018, after developing the second iteration of their robot, FarmWise initiated pilot projects with early adopters on California’s Central Coast and formed a partnership with the Western Growers Association, becoming part of its Center for Innovation and Technology.

In March 2019, the company collaborated with Michigan’s manufacturing firm Roush to produce the third-generation Titan FT-35 robotic weeders. Later that year, in September 2019, FarmWise raised $14.5 million in Series A funding led by Calibrate Ventures.

The company expanded its footprint by establishing a facility in Yuma, Arizona in October 2020 and commenced operations within California’s Imperial Valley.

Products and services

FarmWise specializes in developing automated mechanical weeders and provides these as a service charged per acre rather than selling machinery directly to farmers.

Technology

The company employs proprietary technology integrating AI, computer vision, and robotics to mechanically remove weeds from vegetable fields. The Titan FT-35 model consists of a self-driving tractor coupled with an intelligent implement outfitted with cameras, sensors, and robotic manipulators.

During operation, AI-based detection triggers blades positioned around crops and within furrows to precisely target weeds. The system has been trained on millions of images to accurately differentiate between crops and weeds while interpreting each plant's three-dimensional structure. Software updates are delivered weekly based on newly gathered field data.

Engineered for versatility across various crops, the machine’s capabilities continuously improve through ongoing machine learning. Beyond weeding functions, FarmWise is adapting its platform to undertake additional agricultural tasks.

Awards and recognition

FarmWise has earned numerous industry honors such as the 2018 AgFunder Innovation Award for "Most Innovative U.S. Start-up Pre-Series A," the 2019 French American Business Awards (FABA) "Young Tech Entrepreneurs" accolade awarded to its founders, and Silicon Valley Robotics’ 2020 "Good Robot" award. Its cutting-edge technology has been featured by Business Insider, SVG Capital/THRIVE, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, and Time magazine.

In 2018, Forbes included FarmWise’s founders on its "2019 30 Under 30: Manufacturing & Industry" list, while MIT Technology Review recognized Sébastien Boyer among its "Innovators Under 35 Europe 2018."

By 2020, industry analysts had identified FarmWise as a prominent player within the Robotic Weeding Machines sector.