John Deere announced self-driving technology with the help of Bear Flag Robotics, a startup that began as a part of Deere’s Startup Collaborator program.
The company explains that one of the reasons behind the new step into the future is to help farmers cut down on labor needs due to the struggle to find employees. The self-driving equipment can be fitted to tractors already on the farm so producers won’t have to buy brand new machinery to benefit from the technology.
The new product uses sensors, radar, and a cloud system to drive the tractor on its own. They explain that this will free up time for farmers so that they can do other projects on the farm while the tractor does its job in the field.
The technology is currently being used on farms in Arizona and California, but there’s no word as to when it’ll be released to the public or what the price tag will be.