Autonomous Weeding Tech Startup Backed by Nvidia

Nvidia’s venture capital arm, NVentures, has announced an investment into Carbon Robotics, a Seattle-based startup developing autonomous, laser-weeding technologies.

While the exact investment amount was not disclosed, Carbon Robotics said it would use the funds to support the future development and rollout of its autonomous weeding solutions, which combine AI and robotics for precise weeding capabilities. 

“AI and advanced robotics have immense potential in addressing the myriad of challenges present in agriculture,” said Mohamed Siddeek, head of NVentures. “Carbon Robotics’ innovative solution improves farming practices to increase sustainability and improve the quality of produce available to consumers.”

Carbon Robotics’ solutions include LaserWeeder, which uses lasers and sensors to identify and target weeds.

The LaserWeeder uses 24 Nvidia graphic processing units to process 4.7 million high-resolution images per hour, offering rapid plant detection and identification. Its lasers can eradicate 5,000 weeds per minute, according to Carbon Robotics. 

The robotic weeder sends real-time crop data to the cloud, providing farmers with actionable insights into their farming operations. 

According to the company, its laser-driven solutions reduce weed control costs by 80% and help farmers improve crop yield and quality. 

Related:Carbon Robotics Unveils Autonomous Crop Control Laser

“By providing farmers with an innovative weeding solution that does not rely on traditional methods of chemical herbicides, hand labor, or soil cultivation, Carbon Robotics is at the forefront of using AI to protect crops, people, and the planet,” the company said in a statement. 

Carbon Robotics closed its Series C round last April, raising $30 million from lead investor Sozo Ventures, alongside existing investors Anthos Capital, Fuse Venture Capital, Ignition Partners, Liquid2 and Voyager Capital.