California-based Orchard Robotics has raised $22 million in an oversubscribed Series A round, a funding boost that will help the young startup expand its artificial intelligence–driven farming platform.
Founded in 2022 by Charlie Wu, a former Cornell student and Thiel fellow, the company describes itself as “the AI farming company.” Its technology is designed to give growers a sharper, data-backed understanding of their crops—something Wu argues is sorely lacking in agriculture today.
“Right now, only a small portion of crops ever undergo manual inspection, and yet those samples are the basis for multi-million-dollar decisions around labor, crop inputs, and management,” Wu said. “Solving farming is a data problem, and data is the bedrock of every farming decision. But the lack of precise, actionable data is the bottleneck.”
At the center of Orchard’s platform is a vision system that mounts onto tractors and uses AI to scan fruit, analyze plant health, and generate insights. Beyond the imaging technology, the company also provides farm management and record-keeping software to help producers organize and act on the data.
Building a Data Backbone for Modern Farming
Orchard is already working with major apple and grape farms across the United States, as well as growers of blueberries, cherries, almonds, pistachios, citrus, and strawberries. Investors say the platform is filling a longstanding gap in farming.
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“Farmers are often forced to make high-stakes calls based on incomplete or imprecise data,” said Michael Bloch, partner at Quiet Capital, which co-led the round alongside Shine Capital.
Bloch, who is also joining Orchard’s board, added: “Orchard is providing the ground truth this massive industry has desperately needed, turning guesswork into data-driven precision. We believe they will become an essential partner for every modern farm.”
The funding round, which also drew participation from General Catalyst and other backers, brings Orchard’s total capital raised to more than $25 million. The company plans to double the size of its workforce and open a new office in San Francisco to support its next phase of growth.
The deal comes amid a surge of investment in ag robotics. TRIC Robotics, Saga Robotics, and 4AG have all announced fresh rounds recently, while larger players are also moving in—San Jose-based Bonsai Robotics bought farm-ng, a maker of multipurpose bots for specialty crops, and John Deere acquired GUSS Automation just last week.
For Wu, the rapid pace of innovation underscores one thing: farming’s future lies in data. And Orchard Robotics, he says, wants to be at the center of it.
