--- title: "A Startup’s Bold Plan to Open Robot Farms Near U.S. Cities" description: "## Machine Thumb" date: "2018-10-09" modified: "2018-10-09" authors: - name: "Jon Christian" job_title: "Executive Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/jonc" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/iron-ox-robot-farms" categories: - "Robotics" - "Robots and Machines" tags: - "agriculture" - "angus" - "Farming" - "iron ox" - "the digest" --- # A Startup’s Bold Plan to Open Robot Farms Near U.S. Cities ![]() *\Image: Victor Tangermann\* ## Machine Thumb Farming is one of humanity's oldest professions, right after hunting and gathering. But now, a startup called Iron Ox is in the process of [opening a farm]() in California that will replace human farmers with robots. At the heart of Iron Ox's operations is Angus, a robot that uses its dexterous arm to tend to mattress-sized hydroponic beds of edible plants. The bot's machine learning software allows it to identify and remove plants exhibiting signs of pests or disease before they can infect the whole patch. ## Robofarmer Iron Ox's goal seems to be disrupting the current model of industrial agriculture. The company's founder, Brandon Alexander, appears particularly well-suited to take on the task: He previously worked as both a [farmer and a Google engineer](). "Right now fresh produce really isn't all that fresh," Alexander [told *CNBC*](). "It's traveling on average 2,000 miles from farm to grocery store, which means a lot of people are eating week-old lettuce or strawberries." ## Old BotDonald If all goes well, Iron Ox plans to uproot farming norms with a series of robotic farms that sell locally-grown greens, from lettuce to basil, to restaurants and grocery stores across the country. Though it hasn't inked any deals yet, the startup says it's already in talks with Bay Area restaurants, and Alexander [told a local news station]() in San Francisco that the company hopes to be selling robot-grown produce in grocery stores by 2019. Eventually, he [told *Fast Company*](), the goal is to grow produce at a lower price than conventional farms. If the company can pull that off — which, granted, is a huge "if" — it'll radically reorient the relationship between farmers, food retailers, and, ultimately, your dinner plate. **READ MORE:** [Meet the farmers of the future: Robots]() \[Associated Press\] ***More on robot farmers: [This Terrifying Robot Wolf Is Protecting the Crops of Japanese Farmers]()*** ## Author I'm responsible for editing, assigning, and scouting at Futurism, as well as occasionally writing for the site. That work involves keeping an eye on a wide range of narratives and issues, but over the past few years I've become increasingly interested in how AI is shaping the future of media, the web, and information itself. My day-to-day often involves collaborating on reporting and commentary projects bylined by my colleagues, but I try to find time to do my own reporting as well; stories I've broken for Futurism have been cited by publications including the New York Times, the Washington Post, the New Yorker, Wired, Ars Technica, New York Magazine, the Columbia Journalism Review, Bloomberg, and more. I grew up in Southern Vermont and attended Vanderbilt University. Prior to Futurism, I contributed to outlets including the Boston Globe, Vice, Wired, Slate, the Atlantic, the Outline, Ars Technica and more, and did stints in farming and food service. I currently live in Brooklyn, New York, and in my free time I enjoy pinball, word games, cycling, running, and music production. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()