Thorvald vs R150
Two spraying machines, one verified table. Every figure below is sourced and dated; vendor claims are labelled and kept apart from independent results.
Norwegian autonomous UV-C robot that replaces fungicide sprays for powdery mildew control — working at night in UK tabletop strawberries (used by 13 leading growers, around 20–30% of the national tabletop crop) and California vineyards, where over 150 Thorvald 3.0 units ran the 2025 season. Delivered as a service rather than a machine sale, with a vineyard-specific model launched for 2026.
Best for: Larger tabletop strawberry and wine-grape operations in Saga's service regions (UK, US) wanting to cut fungicide programmes without buying or operating robots themselves.Modular electric unmanned ground vehicle from XAG (Guangzhou, China) built around one chassis that swaps between three payloads — RevoSpray Ground 2 (150 L tank, 12 m spray width) for orchard/vineyard spraying, RevoMower 2.0 for cutting shrubs and reeds, and a 200 kg-capacity material-transport module — navigated by dual-antenna RTK plus stereo-vision/4D-radar obstacle sensing. Publicly sold since June 2021 (launched first in Japan) and still listed with full specs on XAG's own site, but it is XAG's 2022-generation rover — the company unveiled a separate, newer "R Series" (R100/R200) at Agritechnica 2025 as its current smart-farm rover line, and reseller stock fluctuates — buyers should confirm live availability directly with XAG or a dealer rather than assume stock.
Best for: Specialty-crop growers (orchards, vineyards) in a market with an active XAG distributor who want one chassis that swaps between spraying, mowing and material-transport payloads instead of buying separate dedicated machines.| Thorvald Verified 2026-07-17 | R150 Verified 2026-07-19 | |
|---|---|---|
| Overview | ||
| Task | Spraying | Spraying |
| Autonomy | Fully autonomous | Fully autonomous |
| Country of origin | Norway | China |
| Availability | Available now | Available now |
| EU market | CE-marked | Pending |
| Lead time | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
| Last verified | 2026-07-17 | 2026-07-19 |
| Specifications | ||
| Power source | Battery-electric · 48 V Li-Ion 70 Ah (space for a second battery) · charges from a regular outlet | Battery-electric — two hot-swappable XAG B13960S smart batteries (48.1 V, 20,000 mAh / 962 Wh each) |
| Required tractor power | Not required (self-propelled modular platform) | Not required (self-propelled electric UGV) |
| Dimensions | Modular platform; configuration-dependent, not disclosed | 1695 × 1205 × 1205 mm (L×W×H) |
| Weight | ~200 kg | 188 kg net weight; 200 kg load capacity (excluding payload system) |
| Min farm size | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
| Productivity | Fleet-scale service: ~2,500 acres of US vineyard treated; ~20% of UK tabletop strawberry crop | Not disclosed |
| Max speed | Typically under 5 km/h in operation | 1.2 m/s (about 4.3 km/h) |
| Sensors | Autonomous navigation stack; crop-counting cameras (up to 3 million crop counts per robot per night, vendor claim) | Dual-antenna RTK GNSS (GPS, GLONASS, BDS-2/3, Galileo, QZSS) for cm-level positioning; stereo-vision front-obstacle detection; 4D imaging radar; headlamps for night operation |
| Price & model | ||
| Price (EUR) | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
| Native price | Not disclosed | Not disclosed |
| Business model | UV-C treatment as a service — Saga deploys, operates and maintains robot fleets; growers pay for treatment rather than buying machines | Equipment purchase, direct or through XAG's distributor network (xa.com/en/about/agent). XAG does not publish a price on its own product pages. One US reseller (Ripping It Outdoors) lists the R150 sprayer configuration at about $32,000 — a single non-manufacturer, non-EU data point, not a verified current or EU price. |
| Ongoing cost | Service fee (not published); no grower-side machine ownership | Not disclosed — no published consumable/battery-replacement costs found |
| Key outcome | ||
| Best verified result | Fungicide use for powdery mildew −70–100% pesticide use (vendor claim) · vendor | — No verified outcome |
| EU context | ||
| CE marking | CE status not published; UV-C units carry light-exposure safety interlocks for night operation | Not disclosed — no CE-marking evidence found on manufacturer or dealer materials |
| Machinery Regulation | Placed on the EU/UK market by Saga Robotics; Regulation (EU) 2023/1230 autonomous-machine provisions apply | Not confirmed; would fall under Regulation (EU) 2023/1230 autonomous-machine provisions if placed on the EU market |
| CAP subsidy | Large pesticide reduction supports EU pesticide-reduction and eco-scheme goals (service currently UK/US/NO, not EU-27) | Not directly tied to CAP eco-schemes; precision spraying could support national input-reduction eco-scheme measures where available |
"—" 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.