Iron Ox has created a farm entirely run by robots

As the plant bins ripen, the mobile robot transports it to the treatment area. Here, the robotic arm moves baby plants in very compact trays to containers with more space. This optimizes the use of space, because throughout their life cycle, plants only have the space they need.

The co-founder and CEO, Brandon Alexander, said that Iron Ox could do the equivalent of 30 acres of open-air farming in a single acre on its robotic farm. The company wants to build more small farms near urban centers so that the produce is cooler on arrival.

"At the moment, fresh produce is not really fresh. They travel an average of 2,000 kilometers from the farm to the grocery store, which means that many people eat lettuce or strawberries for a week, "explained Alexander.

Iron Ox's robots also use machine learning and AI to detect pests and diseases. They can kill infected plants before the problem spreads.

"So robots can not move plants very efficiently, but they can also help you prevent your plant from getting worse," said co-founder and technical director Jon Binney.

Iron Ox is not the only domestic farm supported by a venture company. Others, like Bowery and Plenty, also aim to use the latest technologies to sustainably produce crops near cities.

However, Iron Ox is the first to fully automate the growth process and completely design its system based on the robot's capabilities.