Saga Robotics, the Norwegian company behind the autonomous Thorvald platform, has completed its largest season to date in the United States and United Kingdom. With over 150 robots operating at 97% uptime, the company logged more than 200,000 autonomous kilometers – the equivalent of circling the Earth five times – tripling its performance from the previous year.
Precision biology meets scalable autonomy
Thorvald robots treated nearly 1,300 acres of vineyards in California and covered 20% of the UK tabletop strawberry market during the 2025 season. The robots use UV-C light to disrupt fungal DNA at the molecular level, targeting powdery mildew with precision-calibrated doses.
“Every pass is calculated. Every dose is optimized. And it’s all built on science,” said Professor Pål Johan From, founder of Saga Robotics and general manager US.
Real-time crop insights
Saga Robotics is tripling its vineyard coverage in California and introducing a new vineyard-specific Thorvald model with upgraded suspension, larger wheels, and automatic tilt compensation for steep terrain.
The company also launched a real-time data service that detects and counts grape clusters autonomously, replacing manual scouting with actionable crop load insights. In the UK, the same platform – developed with Chambers Farm and Bitwise – enabled robots to count over 3 million fruits and flowers per night, delivering row-level insights at scale.
“If you grow strawberries on tabletop, you must have this technology,” said Salih Hodzhov, COO of WB Chambers Farms.
Operational upgrades and market expansion
In the UK, Thorvald robots now travel in autonomous convoys, feature enhanced object detection, and are monitored via a 24/7 operations centre. Saga Robotics aims to reach 30% market coverage in the UK tabletop strawberry sector next season.
Scaling responsibly, backed by fresh capital
Saga Robotics continues to scale with a focus on service quality and unit economics, not just land expansion. In 2025, the company raised USD 11.2 million in two tranches, bringing total funding to over USD 44 million.
“Our technology is performing under pressure, season after season,” said CEO Sacha de La Noë. “We’re positioning the company for long-term success.”
This season alone, Saga claimed Thorvald robots helped eliminate 133 tonnes of fungicides, avoid 4,450 tonnes of CO₂ emissions, and remove 85,200 hours of worker exposure to chemicals.
