E-Series vs FAR Flying Autonomous Robots
Two harvesting machines, one verified table. Every figure below is sourced and dated; vendor claims are labelled and kept apart from independent results.
Spanish robotic strawberry harvester from Huelva with up to 24 independent picking arms that grip and cut the stem so fruit is never touched, guided by colour/infrared depth sensors and LiDAR. A long-running pioneer (field work in Huelva and California, early Driscoll's trials) — but Agrobot itself still labels the E-Series pre-commercial and 'not for sale, project on development' as of 2026, with thin recent public evidence of commercial deployments.
Best for: Watching, not buying — large strawberry growers tracking robotic harvest maturity; Agrobot remains one of the longest-running dedicated strawberry-harvest programmes in Europe.Israeli tethered flying robots that pick tree fruit — apples, peaches, nectarines, apricots, plums and pears — with AI vision selecting only ripe fruit and logging weight, colour and geolocation per fruit. Commercially harvesting with Rivoira Group in Italy, HMC Farms in California/Washington and Unifrutti in Chile, primarily as picking-as-a-service paid per harvested tonne; machine purchase offered since late 2023. Raised an $18M Series C in March 2026 with Kubota among investors.
Best for: Large orchard operations (apples, stone fruit, pears) in Tevel's active regions wanting to replace scarce seasonal picking crews with a per-tonne harvest service that also delivers per-fruit data.| E-Series Verified 2026-07-17 | FAR Flying Autonomous Robots Verified 2026-07-17 | |
|---|---|---|
| Overview | ||
| Task | Harvesting | Harvesting |
| Autonomy | Fully autonomous | Fully autonomous |
| Country of origin | Spain | Israel |
| Availability | Pilot / limited | Available now |
| EU market | CE-marked | CE-marked |
| Lead time | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
| Last verified | 2026-07-17 | 2026-07-17 |
| Specifications | ||
| Power source | Electric-powered platform | Electric — tethered drones powered and coordinated from a mobile ground platform |
| Required tractor power | Self-propelled platform straddling raised beds | Ground platform moves through the orchard; drones are platform-tethered |
| Dimensions | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
| Weight | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
| Min farm size | Not disclosed | Not disclosed (deployments are large commercial orchards) |
| Productivity | Not disclosed | 24/7 harvesting capability; per-unit picking rate not disclosed |
| Max speed | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
| Sensors | Short-range integrated colour + infrared depth sensors per arm; LiDAR; onboard GPUs for real-time ripeness assessment | AI computer vision per drone — ripeness, size, colour grading and disease detection on each fruit; per-fruit weight and geolocation logging |
| Price & model | ||
| Price (EUR) | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
| Native price | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
| Business model | Not for sale — pre-commercial development programme; historical trials with growers in Huelva/Badajoz (ES) and Oxnard/Watsonville (California), including early Driscoll's trials | Primarily harvesting-as-a-service on multi-year plans, paid in €/tonne pegged to direct picking labour cost; revenue shared with regional service partners. Direct purchase offered since Q3 2023. |
| Ongoing cost | Not applicable (not commercially available) | Per-tonne service fee (rates not published) |
| Key outcome | ||
| Best verified result | Fruit contact during harvest Stem grip-and-cut picking — fruit placed in field containers without being touched · vendor | Total harvesting cost −20–30% total cost (vendor claim) · vendor |
| EU context | ||
| CE marking | Not applicable yet — machine not placed on the market (manufacturer states not for sale) | CE status not published; operating commercially in Italian orchards with Rivoira Group |
| Machinery Regulation | Would fall under Regulation (EU) 2023/1230 autonomous-machine provisions if commercialised | EU deployments via service partners; Regulation (EU) 2023/1230 autonomous-machine provisions apply, drone elements may engage additional EU rules |
| CAP subsidy | Harvest automation — not directly tied to CAP eco-schemes | Harvest automation — not directly tied to CAP eco-schemes |
"—" means the manufacturer has not disclosed the figure; we never estimate silently. Model either machine's payback with your own numbers on its ROI calculator page.