By Jamie Martin
Deere & Company has introduced the five companies selected for its 2026 Startup Collaborator Program. Established in 2019, the program was designed to build stronger relationships with startup companies whose technology can add value to agriculture, construction, and roadbuilding customers.
The collaboration enables the company to explore new technologies more quickly and apply them in practical ways. Leadership emphasized that innovation is essential to solving today’s industry challenges.
"Through the Startup Collaborator Program, we're working with startups whose technologies address critical challenges across the various industries we serve," said Wes Robinson, Vice President, Corporate Development & Strategy.
"From real‑time equipment and fleet insights to advanced sensing, AI‑driven robotics, and digital crop intelligence, these collaborations can help us move faster in delivering practical innovations that improve precision, productivity, and sustainability for our customers," said Robinson.
The 2026 collaborators include:
- AIRS ML, which creates on-device AI systems for real-time equipment monitoring and predictive maintenance.
- IoTag, offering telematics technology that transforms machine operating data into insights for optimizing mixed fleets in agriculture and construction.
- resonAg, an Australian agritech company delivering advanced soil sensing systems adapted from proven technologies used in other industries.
- TorqueAGI, developing AI foundation models that enable enterprise robots to operate with real-world reasoning and autonomy.
- Aerobotics, providing fruit growers with drone-based imagery and computer vision tools to improve yield estimation and farm management decisions.
Company representatives explained that each startup brings complementary expertise in sensing, monitoring, robotics, and data analytics.
"The startups in our eighth Collaborator cohort bring complementary technologies that span monitoring, sensing, AI, robotics, and data‑driven insights," said Colton Salyards, Principal, Corporate Development, John Deere. "Through close collaboration, we're able to explore how these innovations can translate into practical benefits for customers in agriculture and construction."
Through this eighth collaborator cohort, John Deere aims to move faster in delivering practical innovations. The goal is to help customers increase productivity, enhance precision, and adopt more sustainable practices across agriculture and construction sectors.
Photo Credit: gettyimages-jevtic
Categories: National