|
Listen to this text  |
Iron Ox’s autonomous cellular robotic Grover. | Source: Iron Ox
There are studies of serious layoffs at Iron Ox, an agriculture know-how firm that makes use of robotics to customise take care of vegetation. Many now-former workers have posted on social media concerning the layoffs.
While it’s unclear precisely what number of workers have been laid off, quite a few posts point out Iron Ox let go of roughly half of its workers. Iron Ox additionally laid off a smaller variety of workers a couple of months in the past, in keeping with different posts from former workers.
Based in Silicon Valley, Iron Ox is an agriculture know-how startup with deep experience in plant science, robotics and synthetic intelligence (AI). The firm makes use of two robots in its rising course of.
The first is Grover, a cellular robotic that autonomously navigates via Iron Ox’s greenhouses. Grover slides underneath the corporate’s plant-growing modules, picks them up and takes them wherever they must be. This may embody transferring the modules to get new vegetation and provides current vegetation extra daylight, diet and water.
Iron Ox’s different robotic, Max, delivers and displays every module’s water, nutrient, combine and pH ranges. Max works with Grover to optimize plant yield, increase development cycles and maximize crop high quality. The firm additionally makes use of robotic arms to are inclined to the vegetation.
Iron Ox’s final funding spherical closed in September 2021 and introduced the corporate’s complete funding to $98 million.
Iron Ox isn’t the one firm feeling monetary stress these days. Fifth Season, one other agricultural know-how firm, closed down final week, in keeping with reporting from the Pittsburgh Business Times. Fifth Season used robotics to develop leafy greens in vertical farms. The greens could be distributed in salad kits bought at grocery shops. The firm employed round 100 employees.
Also final week, autonomous driving firm Argo AI shut down. Some of Argo AI’s round 2,000 workers would both be receiving provides from Ford or Volkswagen, which have been the 2 main monetary backers of Argo AI.
The Robot Reportreached out to Iron Ox for touch upon the layoffs however didn’t hear again at press time.