# Robots in agriculture in 2026: what works on farms, what it costs and what it means for your crew

> Agriculture robots in 2026: laser weeders, autonomous tractors and why fruit picking is still manual, with real costs and how farm crews get paid to train them.

Canonical: https://origindatapartners.com/physical-ai/robots-in-agriculture
By: Origin Data Partners
Status: Published
Published: 2026-11-05
Updated: 2026-11-05
Sources checked: 2026-11-05

## Quick answer

In 2026 farm robots are good at weeding and field passes, not harvesting delicate crops. Carbon Robotics' LaserWeeder is used by more than 100 growers, John Deere is launching autonomy kits for tillage tractors, and strawberry-picking robots are still not commercially workable. Farms lean heavily on guest workers: 398,258 H-2A positions were certified in fiscal 2025.

## Key points

- Robots that drive rows and treat plants (weeding, tillage, spraying) are in commercial use. Robots that pick soft fruit are still in research.
- A Western Growers study priced a LaserWeeder at $1.2 million, with running costs of $267.72 an acre against $900 an acre for hand weeding on one farm.
- Harvest and hand work remain the bottleneck, which is why first-person video of skilled farm crews is valuable to robot labs.

## What are robots actually doing on farms in 2026?

Farm robots work where the job is a repeated pass down a row. Carbon Robotics' LaserWeeder uses cameras and lasers to kill weeds without herbicide and is owned and operated by more than 100 growers across North America, Europe and Australia. John Deere is adding camera-based autonomy kits to large tractors for tillage; AgWeb reported dealers had a limited number for 2025 with a full launch planned for 2026.

Harvesting soft fruit is the opposite case. Washington State University researchers wrote in 2025 that efforts to make strawberry-picking robots commercially workable have so far fallen short, partly because many berries are hidden under leaves.

| Company | Robot and task | Status | Source |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Carbon Robotics | LaserWeeder: camera-guided laser weed control in vegetable rows | Deployed (100+ growers) | [Carbon Robotics](https://carbonrobotics.com/laserweeder) |
| John Deere | Autonomy kit for 8R and 9R tractors doing tillage | Deployed in limited numbers; full launch 2026 | [AgWeb](https://www.agweb.com/news/john-deere-introducing-next-generation-perception-autonomy-kits) |
| Washington State University | Strawberry picker with soft fingers and a fan to move leaves | Research | [Robotics & Automation News](https://roboticsandautomationnews.com/2025/09/05/wsu-researchers-design-robot-that-can-pick-hidden-strawberries/94215) |


## How much do farm robots cost?

Farm robots are priced like big machinery. A [Western Growers study reported by Farm Progress](https://www.farmprogress.com/technology/study-brings-exposure-to-carbon-robotics-weeder) used a purchase price of $1.2 million per LaserWeeder on a 5-year depreciation schedule. At Braga Fresh, running the machine 18 hours a day came to $267.72 an acre, against about $900 an acre when crews weeded organic baby leaf by hand.

That math works on large, high-value vegetable acreage. It rarely works for a small orchard or nursery yet. Autonomy kits that retrofit tractors you already own are a cheaper way in, but they are limited to specific tasks and machines.


## How many farms use robots, and how short is farm labor?

There is no official count of farm robots. The labor data is clearer. The [American Farm Bureau](https://www.fb.org/market-intel/h-2a-program-use-continues-to-soar) reports that 398,258 positions were certified for H-2A guest workers in fiscal 2025, and that the program has grown 185% in 10 years. The BLS projects employment of [agricultural workers](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/farming-fishing-and-forestry/agricultural-workers.htm) to decline 2 percent from 2025 to 2035, yet still expects about 111,500 openings a year as people leave the work.

In other words, farms are replacing people who leave, often with guest workers, and using machines where the task allows it.


## What can farm robots still not do?

Picking ripe fruit without bruising it, finding produce hidden in foliage, pruning, grafting, potting and handling live plants in a nursery are all still human work. Every plant is different, light changes through the day and the ground is uneven. These are the conditions where robot hands fail most.

This is the same gap the IFR describes across robotics: most humanoid and general-purpose applications remain specialized and often require human teleoperation. Robot labs need many hours of real crews doing these tasks to learn how experienced hands make the calls.


## Will robots replace farm workers?

For weeding on big vegetable farms, robots are already taking over some crew hours. For harvest, pruning and nursery work, not in the near term. Most growers will keep relying on seasonal crews and guest workers for years, and good crew leaders will remain scarce.

If you run a farm or nursery, the practical moves are to hold on to experienced people and to look for revenue that rewards their skill. See our page on the [skilled trades and farm worker shortage](https://origindatapartners.com/physical-ai/skilled-trades-shortage).


## Why robot makers need footage of your crew

Robots learn manipulation from examples of people doing the work. Figure has shown a humanoid learning from 100% egocentric human video with no robot demonstrations, and labs want the same view of hands picking, pruning and potting. Our explainer on [how robots learn from video](https://origindatapartners.com/physical-ai/how-robots-learn-from-video) explains why first-person footage matters.

Amelia Robotics pays businesses for approved recordings of work their crews already do. A phone is mounted so it films the task from the worker's view with the hands in frame, and each worker starts a recording deliberately. Tasks, permitted areas and participants are agreed on a setup call before anyone records, and you can leave out jobs or areas. Payment goes to the business once a month with a statement, and you decide how much to share with the crew.

Illustrative example: a nursery with 8 workers who each record 15 approved hours a week would earn about $4,800 a month at the typical rate (8 x 15 x 4 x $10). Amelia's typical pay is $500 to $2,000 a month per recording employee, assuming 12.5 to 50 approved hours a week. Earnings vary, and your agreement and approved recordings decide actual pay. See what counts on our [farms and nurseries page](https://origindatapartners.com/physical-ai/farms-nurseries).


## Next step

See [how farms and nurseries get paid for recording work](https://origindatapartners.com/physical-ai) and try the calculator for your crew.

Origin Data Partners is independent. We may be paid by our partner when a business we introduce is paid; it never comes out of your earnings. [How Origin is paid](https://origindatapartners.com/referral-disclosure).


## Questions and answers

### What robots are used in agriculture today?

Laser weeders such as Carbon Robotics' LaserWeeder, autonomous tillage tractors from John Deere, and spraying robots are in use. Fruit-picking robots are mostly still in research.

### How much does a farm robot cost?

A Western Growers study used a $1.2 million purchase price for a LaserWeeder, with running costs of $267.72 an acre on one farm. Smaller retrofit autonomy kits cost less but do fewer tasks.

### Will robots replace farm workers?

Not for harvest and hand work any time soon. BLS still projects about 111,500 openings a year for agricultural workers, and H-2A certifications reached 398,258 in fiscal 2025.

### Why can't robots pick strawberries yet?

Berries bruise easily and many are hidden under leaves. WSU researchers said in 2025 that efforts to make strawberry robots commercially workable have so far fallen short.

### Is there a farm worker shortage in 2026?

Farms rely more on guest workers each year: the H-2A program has grown 185% in 10 years, with 398,258 positions certified in fiscal 2025.

### Can a farm or nursery get paid to record its crew?

Yes. Amelia Robotics lists farms and nurseries among its priorities and pays businesses for approved recordings. Its example is $500 to $2,000 a month per recording employee; earnings vary.

## Sources

- [Carbon Robotics: LaserWeeder](https://carbonrobotics.com/laserweeder)
- [Farm Progress: Western Growers study of the LaserWeeder](https://www.farmprogress.com/technology/study-brings-exposure-to-carbon-robotics-weeder)
- [AgWeb: John Deere autonomy kits](https://www.agweb.com/news/john-deere-introducing-next-generation-perception-autonomy-kits)
- [WSU via Robotics & Automation News: strawberry picking robot (Sep 2025)](https://roboticsandautomationnews.com/2025/09/05/wsu-researchers-design-robot-that-can-pick-hidden-strawberries/94215)
- [American Farm Bureau: H-2A program use (Jan 2026)](https://www.fb.org/market-intel/h-2a-program-use-continues-to-soar)
- [BLS Occupational Outlook: agricultural workers](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/farming-fishing-and-forestry/agricultural-workers.htm)
- [IFR: World Robotics 2026 service robots (Sep 2026)](https://ifr.org/ifr-press-releases/news/global-sales-of-professional-service-robots-surge-24-percent)
- [Figure: Project Go-Big, training on human video](https://www.figure.ai/news/project-go-big)
- [Amelia Robotics: business program (checked Nov 2026)](https://ameliarobotics.com/)
- [Amelia Robotics: for robotics labs](https://ameliarobotics.com/robotics-labs)

## Related reading

- [Can farms and nurseries get paid to record farm work for AI and robots?](https://origindatapartners.com/physical-ai/farms-nurseries)
- [How robots learn from video of people working (egocentric data, teleoperation, explained)](https://origindatapartners.com/physical-ai/how-robots-learn-from-video)
- [Food processing robots in 2026: what is real in plants, what it costs and what it means for your line](https://origindatapartners.com/physical-ai/food-processing-robots)
- [Skilled trades shortage 2026: electricians, plumbers, HVAC, mechanics and welders](https://origindatapartners.com/physical-ai/skilled-trades-shortage)
- [/physical-ai](https://origindatapartners.com/physical-ai)