Saga Robotics

Saga Robotics’ flagship robot, Thorvald, is an autonomous robot that treats fungal diseases such as powdery mildew without the need for fungicides in vineyards and strawberry farms. This treatment is done through the application of intense UV-C light, with which customers can reduce fungicide use. Thorvald is also equipped with cameras that keep track of yield and ripening levels, and help farmers collect data for disease management. Tools are under development to let Thorvold perform a wider range of labor-intensive tasks such as harvesting, spraying, and distribution of predatory mites.

The company doesn’t directly sell Thorvald to farms, but rather offers its solution through a farming-as-a-service (FaaS) model. This limits farmers’ up-front capital investment for Thorvald. The complete service package includes the robots, field-mapping, treatment deployment, and maintenance. Because Saga Robotics continues to own and maintain the equipment, FaaS is a low-risk business model for farmers, based on a fixed recurring price.