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The new LaserWeeder G2 from Carbon Robotics is designed to be faster, lighter, and more modular than its
predecessor. (Carbon Robotics Photo)
Carbon Robotics wants to zap more weeds among more types of crops on farms of all sizes, and to get there the Seattle-based startup released a new line of its signature LaserWeeder AI-powered robot.
The ag-tech company says the LaserWeeder G2 is faster, lighter and more modular than the original device, and it relies on a combination of the latest AI, computer vision, robotics and laser technology to fight weeds with precision accuracy.
The G2 is designed to operate up to twice as fast to maximize the number of weeded acres per hour. New models are lighter and range in size from 6.6 to 60 feet, offering more configurations to fit diverse farm requirements and budgets.
“LaserWeeder G2 is a huge leap forward,” Carbon Robotics founder and CEO Paul Mikesell said in a news release on Monday. “The new product line benefits from years of learning in real-world farm fields and conditions.”
Founded in 2018, Carbon Robotics developed its machine to attach to the back of a tractor and use an array of AI-powered tech to detect plants in fields and then target and eliminate weeds with lasers, without disturbing the soil microbiology.
The LaserWeeders rely on multiple Nvidia graphics processing units, processing 4.7 million high-resolution images per hour. Powered by an advanced “Carbon AI” deep-learning system for plant detection and identification, the LaserWeeder G2 utilizes a growing dataset of over 40 million plants labeled from three continents. To date, Carbon Robotics has helped growers weed over 250,000 acres, eliminating over 15 billion weeds across 100+ different crops.
All LaserWeeder G2 units are designed and manufactured at Carbon Robotics’ newly opened manufacturing facility in Eastern Washington.
The company, No. 17 on the GeekWire 200 ranked list of Pacific Northwest startups, raised $70 million in a Series D funding round in October. Carbon Robotics has raised $157 million to date and employs 160 people.
Mikesell is a longtime technologist and entrepreneur who previously co-founded data storage company Isilon Systems (which sold for $2.25 billion in 2010) and led an infrastructure engineering group at Uber for four years.
