Orchard Robotics, a company founded by Charlie Wu, has successfully raised $22 million in Series A funding to advance its innovative technology aimed at revolutionizing the agricultural sector. That funding round, led by Quiet Capital and Shine Capital, included General Catalyst and Contrary on the cap table.
Charlie Wu received his B.A. in computer science from Cornell University. During his academic career at one of the country’s foremost agricultural universities, he imagined the premise behind Orchard Robotics. He told us that he was personally really connected to farming. His grandparents were apple farmers in China and have always motivated him to create technology to help the agri-communità.
Orchard Robotics’ mission is to use cutting-edge computer vision technology to help farmers monitor their specialty crops. Yet most of the largest farms in the United States continue to use outdated manual sampling methods resulting in potentially costly decisions. Given the increasing reliance on these fields, the issue is especially timely.
The interactive transportation company’s flagship product includes a relatively new and affordable small camera. It’s deceptively simple to attach it to any tractor, or any other farm vehicle. This camera allows researchers to take ultra-high-resolution close-up images to gain a quick understanding of the health of fruit crops. Orchard Robotics’ technology is helping to revolutionize the country’s largest apple and grape farms. This extensive adoption is a testament to its enduring effectiveness in real world applications. More recently, the vertically-integrated company has branched out to blueberries, cherries, almonds, pistachios, citrus and strawberries.
Wu believes that this clear, trustworthy, and impactful data collection should inform all sustainable farming practices. He stated, “If you don’t know what you’re growing in the field, you don’t know how much chemical to apply to it. You don’t know how many workers to hire to harvest it. You don’t know what you can actually sell and market.”
This funding will help Orchard Robotics get smarter, and move deeper into the agricultural sector. Wu envisions Orchard Robotics taking the same trajectory as Flock Safety. This high-tech public safety startup recently became the first such company to achieve a $7.5 billion valuation.
Our goal is to go far beyond mere data aggregation. Wu was quick to comment, suggesting that this was part of a larger vision for the company’s influence on agriculture. He expressed gratitude for the opportunity to learn from experts during his time at Cornell, stating, “I got to meet fruit professors who are the best in the world at what they do.”
Strategic investors including Dr. Andy Chung help Orchard Robotics further its mission. Backed with a fierce dedication to improving agriculture through technology, the company is poised to lead the transformation of an industry. The company uses cutting-edge computer vision systems to automate crops as efficiently as possible. It gives growers the information they require to manage their crops in a more sustainable and ultimately more profitable manner.
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