Eternal Ag Lands EUR 8M for Autonomous Harvesting Robots

Germany-based startup Eternal Ag has secured EUR 8 million in investment funding to expand the development of its fully autonomous greenhouse-harvesting robots. Designed initially for tomato production, the AI-powered Harvester uses simulation-trained machine vision, autonomous navigation, and a patented precision-cutting end-effector to operate independently for up to 22 hours a day. The modular system is designed to accommodate additional crop types in the future while helping growers address labor shortages, improve productivity, and optimize greenhouse operations. By training robots in simulated greenhouse environments before deployment, Eternal aims to shorten integration times and tailor harvesting performance to individual growing conditions.

Eternal’s Harvester is designed to operate independently, without human intervention. Image used courtesy of Eternal

Controlled Environment Agriculture

The Europe Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) market is growing, with a projected increase of USD 21 billion between 2025 and 2034 (rising at a compound annual growth rate of 16.6%), according to Dimension Market Research. Drivers behind the transition from arable-land-based agriculture to CEA include a changing global climate (with variable weather), growing urban populations, rising food demand, demand for pesticide-free edibles, and the need to shore up nationwide food resilience without relying heavily on imported goods.

Other factors behind EU CEA growth include strict EU sustainability objectives, improvements in energy-saving LED lighting, the integration of AI and the Internet of Things, advanced climate control technologies, and supportive policy frameworks such as the European Green Deal’s Farm to Fork Strategy.

Regulated greenhouse environments allow growers to control temperature and moisture, reduce and manage valuable resource use (such as energy and water), grow vertically to economize on space, reduce intensive manual labor, and provide a space for year-round growth.

Automated greenhouse environments use advanced robotic technology outfitted with artificial intelligence-backed machine vision systems, soft-gripping components for picking ripe fruits and vegetables, and other additional technologies that help farmers grow more efficiently.

In addition to helping growers harvest tomatoes, Eternal seeks to evolve its Harvester technology to accommodate other types of crops. Image used courtesy of Eternal

Simulation-First Training

Eternal’s harvesting robots are designed to operate 22 hours a day, relieving the fatigue and wear and tear that human workers might otherwise undergo and ensuring consistent productivity to meet growing consumer demand for quality food items. Eternal’s Harvester will be the first of its products to launch commercially. This advanced robot uses AI to process greenhouse operations data, providing insights for process optimization, enabling the system to learn, adapt, and improve. Eternal’s Harvester features a modular design to facilitate the addition of robotic functions as the system evolves to meet changing greenhouse operational requirements.

The Harvester is fully autonomous without the need for human operation, with the capacity to crop 120 trusses per hour and switch lanes autonomously (on concrete floors). The system also features a corrosion-resistant frame and a patented end-effector for executing precision cuts of trusses with zero truss damage, according to Eternal.

The Harvester is trained within a simulated greenhouse environment to provide an opportunity for testing, evaluation, and refinement before real-world deployment. This practice allows robots to train to navigate and harvest in a specific grower’s greenhouse environment, accounting for variations in path navigation, lighting, gutter height, and plant spacing (for example). Training in this way can reduce iteration cycles and enable faster deployment for growers.

Striking a Balance

Eternal envisages a future in which greenhouse growing operations are fully automated and seeks to contribute to it with simulation-trained, real-time, vision-equipped greenhouse harvesting robots. In a world where changing global temperatures, food security concerns, and growing demand for good-quality produce put pressure on growers to perform, technologies like the Harvester from Eternal provide a means of striking a sustainable balance between grower and consumer, mitigating seasonal labor retention issues, optimizing efficiency, economizing on time (spent growing and conducting other important related activities), and maintaining productivity.

Participating investors supporting Eternal’s growth include Backbone Ventures, Simon Capital, EquityPitcher Ventures, and Oyster Bay Venture Capital.