Rubion 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.
Strawberry-picking robot for tabletop systems; little public evidence of commercial rollout since ~2021, with Octinion's picking activities continuing under picking.technology — commercial status uncertain.
Best for: Tabletop strawberry growers facing harvest-labour shortages and tight picking windows.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.| Rubion Verified 2026-07-16 | FAR Flying Autonomous Robots Verified 2026-07-17 | |
|---|---|---|
| Overview | ||
| Task | Harvesting | Harvesting |
| Autonomy | Fully autonomous | Fully autonomous |
| Country of origin | Belgium | Israel |
| Availability | Pilot / limited | Available now |
| EU market | CE-marked | CE-marked |
| Lead time | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
| Last verified | 2026-07-16 | 2026-07-17 |
| Specifications | ||
| Power source | Battery-electric · shift-length runtime | Electric — tethered drones powered and coordinated from a mobile ground platform |
| Required tractor power | Not applicable | Ground platform moves through the orchard; drones are platform-tethered |
| Dimensions | 1.50 × 0.90 × 1.60 m | Not disclosed |
| Weight | 340 kg | Not disclosed |
| Min farm size | 1 ha tabletop | Not disclosed (deployments are large commercial orchards) |
| Productivity | Picks at ~human single-hand rate, 24 h | 24/7 harvesting capability; per-unit picking rate not disclosed |
| Max speed | Aisle travel pace | Not disclosed |
| Sensors | Stereo vision · ripeness detection · soft gripper | 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 | Lease / harvest-as-a-service (pilot) | 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 disclosed — pilot terms | Per-tonne service fee (rates not published) |
| Key outcome | ||
| Best verified result | Harvest labour dependency partial automation · vendor | Total harvesting cost −20–30% total cost (vendor claim) · vendor |
| EU context | ||
| CE marking | CE marked (pilot units) | CE status not published; operating commercially in Italian orchards with Rivoira Group |
| Machinery Regulation | Compliant — Regulation (EU) 2023/1230 | EU deployments via service partners; Regulation (EU) 2023/1230 autonomous-machine provisions apply, drone elements may engage additional EU rules |
| CAP subsidy | Eligible under horticulture innovation 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.