Burro vs Fieldworker 1
Two harvesting machines, one verified table. Every figure below is sourced and dated; vendor claims are labelled and kept apart from independent results.
American autonomous collaborative carrier — follows pickers or runs fixed A-to-B routes hauling harvest totes and materials; 550+ robots sold and ~300,000 autonomous hours across the US, Australia, New Zealand, the UK, Israel and Latin America.
Best for: Labour-squeezed berry, table-grape and nursery operations that lose picker time to walking full trays back to the collection point.Cambridge/Plymouth-rooted raspberry harvesting robot with four soft picking arms and AI-enhanced 3D vision — spectral-frequency ripeness sensing removes human bias from pick decisions. Running a two-year harvesting-as-a-service programme with Place UK (Norfolk) and Littywood Farm (Stafford), backed by £3m funding; international trials planned in Portugal and Australia, commercial multi-robot fleets targeted from 2027.
Best for: Raspberry growers in the UK who want early access to soft-fruit harvest automation via a service programme rather than buying hardware.| Burro Verified 2026-07-16 | Fieldworker 1 Verified 2026-07-17 | |
|---|---|---|
| Overview | ||
| Task | Harvesting | Harvesting |
| Autonomy | Fully autonomous | Fully autonomous |
| Country of origin | United States | United Kingdom |
| Availability | Available now | Pilot / limited |
| EU market | Pending | Pending |
| Lead time | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
| Last verified | 2026-07-16 | 2026-07-17 |
| Specifications | ||
| Power source | 2.56 kWh LFP battery (base Burro), swappable | Battery-electric (details not disclosed) |
| Required tractor power | Not applicable | Not required (self-propelled between rows) |
| Dimensions | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
| Weight | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
| Min farm size | 2 ha | Not disclosed |
| Productivity | Carries ~227 kg (500 lb); up to 16 km (10 mi) range per battery | Designed to match human picker speed and quality; figures not published |
| Max speed | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
| Sensors | Computer vision (people-following) · high-precision GPS · IP65-rated for 40 °C+ operation | AI-enhanced 3D cameras · spectral-frequency ripeness sensing · machine learning pick selection |
| Price & model | ||
| Price (EUR) | ≈€21,000–72,000 | Not disclosed |
| Native price | US$25,000–85,000 depending on model (trade-press reported range) | Not disclosed |
| Business model | Buy per unit via Burro or distributors (e.g. AdeptAg in the US); fleet software included | Harvesting-as-a-service (2-year programme with Place UK and Littywood Farm); no hardware list price |
| Ongoing cost | Battery replacement by cycle life; software/fleet services | Service contract terms not disclosed |
| Key outcome | ||
| Best verified result | Fleet scale in commercial use 550+ robots sold, ~300,000 autonomous hours · vendor | Ripeness assessment Spectral-frequency sensing removes human bias from ripeness analysis · vendor |
| EU context | ||
| CE marking | No CE marking verifiable as of July 2026 | No CE marking published — UK (UKCA regime) pilots; Portugal trials planned, EU placement not verified |
| Machinery Regulation | Not established for the EU market; conformity under Regulation (EU) 2023/1230 would be required for EU sales | Not verified for EU market placement |
| CAP subsidy | Not applicable without EU availability | Not applicable — service not yet offered in the EU |
"—" 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.