John Deere acquires Bear Flag Robotics

Deere & Company announced it will acquire Bear Flag Robotics for US$250 million. Founded in 2017, the Silicon Valley-based startup develops autonomous driving technology compatible with existing agricultural machines. According to John Deere, the deal will accelerates the development and delivery of automation and autonomy on the farm and supports the company’s long-term strategy to create smarter machines.

“Deere views autonomy as an important step forward in enabling farmers to leverage their resources strategically to feed the world and create more sustainable and profitable operations,” said John Deere CTO, Jahmy Hindman. “Bear Flag’s team of talented agriculture professionals, engineers and technologists have a proven ability to deliver advanced technology solutions to market.”

Deere first started working with Bear Flag in 2019 as part of the company’s Startup Collaborator program, an initiative focused on enhancing work with startup companies whose technology could add value for Deere customers. Since then, Bear Flag has successfully deployed its autonomous solution on a limited number of farms in the U.S.

“One of the biggest challenges farmers face today is the availability of skilled labor to execute time-sensitive operations that impact farming outcomes. Autonomy offers a safe and productive alternative to address that challenge head on,” said Igino Cafiero, co-founder and CEO of Bear Flag Robotics. “Bear Flag’s mission to increase global food production and reduce the cost of growing food through machine automation is aligned with Deere’s and we’re excited to join the Deere team to bring autonomy to more farms.”
www.bearflagrobotics.com