Unlike traditional weed control methods that often rely on herbicides or labor-intensive practices, the LaserWeeder uses targeted lasers to eliminate weeds without harming crops.
Carbon Robotics Secures $70 Million in Funding, Led by BOND
Q&A with Paul Mikesell, CEO and founder | Carbon Robotics
Tell us about yourself and your role with Carbon Robotics.
Carbon Robotics is at the forefront of agricultural innovation, delivering cost-effective, efficient, and sustainable solutions that transform farming practices. We revolutionized weed control with our groundbreaking laserweeding technology, offering growers an advanced, AI-powered alternative that drastically reduces both the time and expense traditionally associated with one of their most labor-intensive tasks: weed management.
As the founder and CEO, I lead our team in driving the evolution of AI-powered robotics in agriculture, with a mission to empower farmers and enhance their productivity. We are relentless in our pursuit of cutting-edge tools that address farming’s toughest challenges, from precision weeding to crop thinning, helping farmers protect their crops, their land, and their livelihoods. This vision amplifies Carbon Robotics' leadership and innovation while emphasizing the benefits for farmers.
I've been deeply involved in developing and testing every aspect of the laserweeding technology, but perhaps my greatest contribution has been pushing the Carbon Robotics team to get prototypes into the field as quickly as possible. By breaking them in and solving problems early, we ensure our solutions are practical and effective for the farmers who rely on them.
You recently raised $70 million in Series D funding. How do you see this funding accelerating Carbon Robotics' growth, particularly in terms of scaling the LaserWeeder and expanding into new markets?
The $70 million in Series D funding is a game-changer for Carbon Robotics, as it allows us to scale our LaserWeeder technology and expand into new markets at a much faster pace. This capital will enable us to ramp up production to meet growing demand from farmers, not just in the U.S. but globally, where sustainable and efficient weed control is critical.
Additionally, we plan to invest in further R&D to continuously improve the LaserWeeder’s capabilities, ensuring it stays ahead of the curve in terms of precision, speed, and AI-driven insights. Expanding into new markets means tailoring our technology to meet the unique challenges and regulations of different agricultural environments, and this funding gives us the flexibility to do that effectively. Ultimately, this funding positions us to bring our revolutionary technology to more farmers, helping them increase yields, reduce costs, and promote more sustainable farming practices on a global scale.
Finally, we’re expanding our manufacturing capabilities and have opened a state-of-the-art facility in Richland, Washington where we are hiring local talent. By doing this, we now own our manufacturing of the LaserWeeder and product lines and have better quality control, improved time control and employee equity.
In what ways has your background in tech and entrepreneurship, including your work at Uber and Isilon Systems, influenced Carbon Robotics' innovative approach to agriculture?
My background in tech and entrepreneurship, particularly from my time at Uber and Isilon Systems, has had a significant influence on how we approach innovation at Carbon Robotics. At Uber, I saw firsthand how technology could disrupt and transform traditional industries, and I’ve applied that same thinking to agriculture. We’re using AI and robotics to solve longstanding challenges in farming, much like how Uber leveraged tech to redefine transportation.
At Isilon Systems, I worked on developing scalable, distributed storage systems, and that experience has been instrumental in shaping how we build our technologies at Carbon Robotics. Scalability, precision, and efficiency are core to everything we do, from the design of our LaserWeeder to the way we integrate AI for real-time insights.
By bringing lessons from the tech world—like rapid innovation, data-driven decision-making, and scalable solutions—I’ve been able to lead Carbon Robotics in creating tools that empower farmers to be more productive, reduce their costs, and adopt more sustainable practices. This tech-driven mindset is key to our mission of leading the AI-powered revolution in agriculture.
How has Carbon Robotics’ focus on customer service and close collaboration with farmers contributed to its success in scaling its agricultural technology?
At Carbon Robotics, our commitment to exceptional customer service and close collaboration with farmers has been pivotal to our success in scaling our agricultural technology. By prioritizing open communication and building strong relationships with our customers, we gain valuable insights into their real-world challenges and needs. This feedback directly informs our product development and innovation, ensuring that our solutions, like the LaserWeeder, truly address the specific pain points farmers face. This emphasis on open, two-way communication is a key factor in our ability to secure substantial funding and stay ahead of the competition. By concentrating on the field, we ensure that farmers are satisfied with the solutions we provide.
Collaborating closely with farmers allows us to understand their operations, workflows, and the unique conditions of their fields. This knowledge enables us to refine our technologies and enhance usability, making our tools more effective and easier to integrate into their existing processes.
Additionally, our focus on customer service ensures that farmers feel supported throughout their journey with our products, from initial training to ongoing maintenance and updates. By fostering a strong partnership with our customers, we build trust and loyalty, which not only drives adoption but also encourages word-of-mouth referrals in the agricultural community.
Ultimately, this customer-centric approach has been instrumental in our growth, allowing us to scale our technology effectively while continually improving our offerings to meet the evolving needs of the farming industry.
What makes Carbon Robotics’ LaserWeeder stand out from other agtech solutions, and how does its AI-powered technology specifically address the needs of modern farmers?
Carbon Robotics’ LaserWeeder stands out from other agtech solutions due to its unique combination of advanced AI-powered technology and precision laser capabilities. Unlike traditional weed control methods that often rely on herbicides or labor-intensive practices, the LaserWeeder uses targeted lasers to eliminate weeds without harming crops. This not only reduces the need for chemical inputs, promoting a more sustainable approach to farming but also enhances operational efficiency.
Our AI technology plays a crucial role in this innovation. The LaserWeeder is equipped with sophisticated machine-learning algorithms that enable it to differentiate between crops and weeds in real-time. This capability allows it to precisely target only the unwanted weeds, minimizing crop damage and maximizing yield potential. Additionally, the system learns from its environment and continuously improves its performance, adapting to different field conditions and crop types.
The LaserWeeder addresses the pressing needs of modern farmers by providing a solution that significantly reduces labor costs and the time spent on weed management. As the agricultural industry faces challenges like labor shortages and increasing pressure to adopt sustainable practices, our technology empowers farmers to work smarter, not harder. By automating weed control, the LaserWeeder allows farmers to focus on other critical aspects of their operations, ultimately enhancing productivity and profitability.
Carbon Robotics’ LaserWeeder sets itself apart through its innovative use of AI and lasers, offering a sustainable, efficient, and precise solution that directly meets the evolving demands of today’s farmers.
With expansion plans into Eastern and Southern Europe as well as the Asia-Pacific region, what unique challenges or opportunities do you anticipate in these new markets?
As we expand into Eastern and Southern Europe and the Asia-Pacific region, we anticipate unique challenges and exciting opportunities. Navigating complex regulatory landscapes, climates, and cultural differences in farming practices will require careful adaptation of our technology to meet local needs. Establishing a market presence may also pose difficulties, particularly in regions where traditional methods prevail.
However, there’s significant potential for growth. The increasing demand for sustainable agricultural solutions aligns perfectly with our LaserWeeder, offering eco-friendly alternatives to chemical herbicides.
Mood Rowghani from BOND mentioned that Carbon Robotics is uniquely positioned to transform agriculture with AI. What role do you envision AI playing in the future of farming beyond weed control, and what’s next for your company in this space?
AI is set to play a transformative role in the future of farming beyond weed control, and at Carbon Robotics, we see immense potential for its application across various agricultural processes. As we look ahead, we envision AI enhancing precision agriculture through improved data analytics, enabling farmers to make informed decisions based on real-time insights. This includes optimizing planting schedules, monitoring crop health, and predicting yields, which can significantly increase efficiency and reduce waste.
Additionally, AI can facilitate automated solutions for tasks such as crop thinning, pest management, and soil health assessment, further streamlining farming operations.
As for what's next for Carbon Robotics, we’re focused on expanding our AI capabilities and developing new hardware and software products. Our goal is to empower farmers with innovative technologies that not only improve their productivity but also promote profitability and sustainability in agriculture, ensuring a resilient future for farming.
Paul Mikesell is the founder and CEO of Carbon Robotics. Paul has deep experience founding and building successful technology startups. Paul co-founded Isilon Systems, a distributed storage company, in 2001. Isilon went public in 2006 and was acquired by EMC for $2.5 billion in 2010. In 2006, Paul co-founded Clustrix, a distributed database startup that was acquired by MariaDB in 2018. Prior to Carbon, Paul served as Director of Infrastructure Engineering at Uber, where he grew the team and opened the company’s engineering office in Seattle, later focusing on deep learning and computer vision. Paul holds a bachelor’s degree in computer science from the University of Washington. He was named the 2024 Foster School Of Business UW Entrepreneur of the Year and previously was recognized with the 2023 UW Alumni Impact Award.
The content & opinions in this article are the author’s and do not necessarily represent the views of RoboticsTomorrow
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