DailyRobotics prepares to launch strawberry harvesting robot in California

Israeli agtech company DailyRobotics plans to deploy a robotic strawberry harvester in California next April, targeting commercial-scale use in open-field production. The Q2 unit uses two robotic arms equipped with soft grippers to pick fruit and place it directly into clamshells. According to cofounder Adham Ghazali, current field performance is about 30 kg per hour, with hardware capacity closer to 50 kg per hour as software and cycle times are improved. One operator can supervise up to eight machines.

The battery-powered system is designed for beds between 2.2 and 4.6 feet wide, performing harvesting and on-board grading. Each berry is imaged and assessed for size, defects, color maturity, and over-ripeness before being sorted into the appropriate bin or pack. Ghazali stated that the closed-loop process ensures consistent product quality. A perception system with an integrated camera enables the robotic arm to locate berries beneath foliage.

Growers continue to face a tight labour supply and rising costs in the sector. In California, picking expenses can reach US$43,000 per acre annually, and crop losses may exceed 30 per cent in some areas. DailyRobotics is evaluating a robotics-as-a-service model alongside direct sales and aims to determine which option best matches operating needs and economics. The state’s extended harvest window would allow units to move between regions throughout the year.

Founded in 2023 by Ghazali, Majed Jubeh, and Farah Jubran, the startup has received funding from its founders, angel investors, and a non-dilutive grant. It joins a growing field of companies working on automated strawberry harvesting, including L5, Harvest CROO Robotics, Agrobot, Organifarms, Fieldwork Robotics, Dogtooth Tech and Tortuga AgTech, now part of Oishii.

Approaches vary across the sector, from direct fruit gripping to stem-cutting systems, the latter often viewed as more suitable for controlled-environment production. Many competitors are still in trial stages, with some targeting greenhouse or tabletop setups and others, such as DailyRobotics and Harvest CROO Robotics, focusing on open-field crops.