Honeybee vs Field Friend (Feldfreund)
Two weeding machines, one verified table. Every figure below is sourced and dated; vendor claims are labelled and kept apart from independent results.
Fully autonomous battery-electric laser weeding robot from Caterra, an ETH Zürich spin-off (Glattbrugg, ZH) — deep-learning vision distinguishes crop, weed and soil, then kills weeds with laser pulses to within ~3 mm of the crop, herbicide-free and organic-certified. In pre-order as of mid-2026 after 2025 field pilots (incl. the smaller 300 kg Grasshopper test fleet of 11 units); direct sales only, no dealer network yet.
Best for: Organic and high-value vegetable growers (~10–15+ ha of annual crops) replacing labour-intensive hand weeding with 24/7 in-row laser weeding.Modular AI mini field robot from Zauberzeug (Havixbeck, Münsterland) — a ~100 kg tracked platform under 1 m³ that uses onboard camera AI (the "Zauberzeug Robot Brain" edge-compute unit) to distinguish crops from weeds and mechanically remove them, including deep-rooted weeds. Offered both as a pay-per-hour weeding service (no machine purchase) and as a development platform; trade press reported roughly €20,000 for the machine with tools up to ~€5,000 extra. Winner of the Münsterland Innovation Award 2023/24.
Best for: Small-scale German vegetable and row-crop growers, market gardens and research users who want camera-guided mechanical in-row weeding without a big capex — pay per hour of weeding done.| Honeybee Verified 2026-07-16 | Field Friend (Feldfreund) Verified 2026-07-17 | |
|---|---|---|
| Overview | ||
| Task | Weeding | Weeding |
| Autonomy | Fully autonomous | Fully autonomous |
| Country of origin | Switzerland | Germany |
| Availability | Pre-order | Available now |
| EU market | Pending | CE-marked |
| Lead time | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
| Last verified | 2026-07-16 | 2026-07-17 |
| Specifications | ||
| Power source | Battery-electric — over 24 h per battery set, two sets supplied for 24/7 operation | Battery-electric; solar panel and backup battery cited for extended operation |
| Required tractor power | Is the vehicle (self-propelled) | Is the vehicle (compact tracked mini robot) |
| Dimensions | Track width configurable 1.50–1.80 m (beds or dams) | Under 1 m³ compact footprint (dev-kit chassis: 845 × 670 × 685 mm) |
| Weight | Not disclosed (smaller Grasshopper pilot unit — 300 kg) | ~100 kg (dev-kit chassis 100 kg) |
| Min farm size | ~10 ha annual crops (15+ ha ideal) | Not disclosed |
| Productivity | 24/7 capable; multiple robots can work the same field (Grasshopper pilot — ~80 m/h) | Not disclosed |
| Max speed | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
| Sensors | RTK-GNSS navigation · cameras with deep-learning crop/weed/soil segmentation | Camera AI crop/weed differentiation · GPS-RTK navigation · Zauberzeug Robot Brain edge-AI computer |
| Price & model | ||
| Price (EUR) | ≈€220,000 | ~€20,000 |
| Native price | ≈€220,000 purchase (4-laser) or ≈€65,000/year lease — trade-press figures, not published by Caterra | ~€20,000 (machine, trade-press reported, Nov 2024) + up to ~€5,000 tools; service model priced per hour |
| Business model | Direct sales / pre-order via Caterra; one-year lease option reported | Pay-per-hour weeding service as the headline model; machine and dev-kit purchase also offered |
| Ongoing cost | Electricity; laser and optics service (terms not disclosed) | Service model includes maintenance; battery cycling and tool wear if machine is owned |
| Key outcome | ||
| Best verified result | Hand-weeding labour in organic vegetables Autonomous 24/7 laser weeding, herbicide-free · vendor | Herbicide use Camera-guided mechanical single-weed removal, herbicide-free, including deep-rooted weeds · vendor |
| EU context | ||
| CE marking | Not confirmed — pre-series/pre-order stage | German-built machine operating commercially in Germany; CE status not independently verified |
| Machinery Regulation | Swiss manufacturer — CH follows EU machinery rules via the CH–EU Mutual Recognition Agreement; EU-market conformity not yet demonstrated publicly | EU-built; conformity route under the EU machinery regime not published |
| CAP subsidy | Herbicide-free weeding aligns with CAP eco-schemes and CH Absenkpfad (pesticide-reduction) goals | Herbicide-free mechanical weeding supports CAP eco-scheme and organic goals |
"—" 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.