John Deere acquires Bear Flag Robotics to accelerate autonomous technology on farm

MOLINE/ILLINOIS, 06 August 2021: Deere & Company has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Bear Flag Robotics for USD 250 million.

Founded in 2017, the Silicon Valley-based startup develops autonomous driving technology compatible with existing machines. The deal accelerates the development and delivery of automation and autonomy on the farm and supports John Deere's long-term strategy to create smarter machines with advanced technology to support individual customer needs.

"Deere views autonomy as an important step forward in enabling farmers to leverage their resources strategically to feed the world and create more sustainable and profitable operations," said Jahmy Hindman, Chief Technology Officer at John Deere.

Igino Cafiero, co-founder, and CEO of Bear Flag Robotics said "One of the biggest challenges farmers face today is the availability of skilled labor to execute time-sensitive operations that impact farming outcomes. Autonomy offers a safe and productive alternative to address that challenge head-on."

"Bear Flag's mission to increase global food production and reduce the cost of growing food through machine automation is aligned with Deere's and we're excited to join the Deere team to bring autonomy to more farms," Igino added.

"Deere and Bear Flag are highly complementary from both a technology and mission perspective," said Dan Leibfried, Director – Automation & Autonomy at Deere. "We look forward to working even closer together with the ultimate goal of helping farmers achieve the best possible outcomes through advanced technology like autonomy."

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