Aigro UP vs MoonDino
Two weeding machines, one verified table. Every figure below is sourced and dated; vendor claims are labelled and kept apart from independent results.
Compact Dutch autonomous robot for orchards, vineyards and tree nurseries — mows, hoes and harrows between and under tree rows. Camera-based row recognition does the in-row navigation (GPS only switches rows/fields), so it keeps working under thick foliage where GNSS robots struggle. Swappable dual 48V batteries change over in about a minute for near-continuous operation; commercial rollout in the Netherlands runs through importer Mechan.
Best for: Fruit growers and tree nurseries in the Benelux wanting a light, affordable (~€45k) electric robot for continuous mowing and mechanical weed control under canopy.Solar-powered autonomous mechanical weeding robot for rice paddies, built by ArvaTec Srl (Rescaldina, Lombardy, Italy — a 2002 Politecnico di Milano agricultural-engineering spin-off). GNSS RTK/GPS-guided, uniquely shaped wheels weed and pad the soil immediately after sowing without touching the rice plants, working on both dry and flooded paddy ground. Launched in 2022 and still actively demonstrated in Italy as of 2026 (dedicated "DEMO MOONDINO 2026" events on ArvaTec's own site); ArvaTec does not publish a price — third-party directories cite an indicative €50,000, unverified at the source and stated as quote-dependent.
Best for: Italian (and other EU) rice growers wanting to cut herbicide use and hand/mechanical weeding labour on paddy plots around the machine's roughly 10-hectare-per-cycle coverage, including organic or reduced-chemical operations.| Aigro UP Verified 2026-07-16 | MoonDino Verified 2026-07-19 | |
|---|---|---|
| Overview | ||
| Task | Weeding | Weeding |
| Autonomy | Fully autonomous | Fully autonomous |
| Country of origin | Netherlands | Italy |
| Availability | Available now | Available now |
| EU market | CE-marked | Pending |
| Lead time | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
| Last verified | 2026-07-16 | 2026-07-19 |
| Specifications | ||
| Power source | Battery-electric · dual swappable 48 V Li-ion packs, ~1-minute changeover | Solar-electric — 1200 W electric motor, battery continuously charged by 2 onboard photovoltaic panels; zero fuel cost, zero operating CO2 emissions per ArvaTec |
| Required tractor power | Not required (self-propelled) | Not required (self-propelled) |
| Dimensions | 55 cm wide (2WD and 4WD) or 75 cm wide (4WD) chassis | Not disclosed |
| Weight | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
| Min farm size | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
| Productivity | Up to 24 h/day operation with battery rotation | Roughly 10 hectares covered per working cycle, with up to 16 h autonomous operation per charge (agtecher.com; ArvaTec publishes no numeric figures) |
| Max speed | Not disclosed | 1 km/h |
| Sensors | AI camera row recognition for in-row navigation · GPS for row/field switching · app monitoring with remote takeover on alerts | GNSS RTK positioning with GPS navigation and onboard sensors for high-precision mechanical weeding |
| Price & model | ||
| Price (EUR) | €45,000 | Not disclosed |
| Native price | €45,000 | Not disclosed |
| Business model | Buy; commercial rollout via importer Mechan (Achterveld, NL) | Direct purchase from ArvaTec Srl (Italy), quote-based — ArvaTec does not publish pricing on its own site; third-party directories cite an indicative ~€50,000, explicitly described there as varying by configuration and subject to contacting ArvaTec for a precise quote |
| Ongoing cost | Battery packs and wear parts; support via Aigro/Mechan | Not disclosed — no ongoing/subscription costs published |
| Key outcome | ||
| Best verified result | Mowing/weeding labour in orchard rows Unattended autonomous operation up to 24 h/day with battery swaps · vendor | Herbicide use in rice paddy weed control Mechanical weeding via robot wheels replaces chemical herbicide application, aligning with organic-farming practice · vendor |
| EU context | ||
| CE marking | CE marked for the EU market (sold commercially in NL) | Not disclosed — no CE-marking evidence found on ArvaTec's own site or product brochure checked this session |
| Machinery Regulation | Placed on the EU market by Aigro B.V.; autonomous-machine provisions of Regulation (EU) 2023/1230 apply | Not confirmed directly, but the machine is sold from and demonstrated in Italy (EU); would fall under Regulation (EU) 2023/1230 autonomous-machine provisions if/when formally placed on the EU market |
| CAP subsidy | Mechanical weed control supports eco-scheme / herbicide-reduction measures under CAP | Mechanical weeding removes chemical herbicide use, aligning with organic-farming and herbicide-reduction eco-scheme measures under CAP |
"—" 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.