Swiss precision agriculture company Ecorobotix has announced a major expansion in the United States, confirming that its flagship ARA Ultra‑High Precision Sprayer will now be assembled for the US market in Lyons, Kansas. The move represents one of the company’s most significant international scale‑ups to date and underscores demand for next‑generation spray technologies that cut inputs while maintaining crop performance.
Founded in Switzerland, Ecorobotix has evolved from a robotics start‑up into a global agtech provider with a stated 80% market share in the high‑precision spraying segment. The Kansas assembly operation marks a pivotal step in its North American strategy.
Local manufacturing to meet US crop‑system needs
ARA sprayers for the US market will be assembled in partnership with KMW, a Kansas‑based manufacturer with long‑standing expertise in agricultural machinery. The relationship strengthens Ecorobotix’s North American supply chain and gives the company the flexibility to adapt hardware more rapidly to the needs of US farms, many of which differ sharply from their European counterparts.
“We now can quickly… visit and listen to growers’ needs, observe, plan and manufacture tailored crop and regional solutions,” an Ecorobotix spokesperson told AgTechNavigator. “Farming in the US is very different than in Europe. Farms are much larger here and need certain options to adapt to existing irrigation systems, for example. Manufacturing in the U.S. makes it much easier to adapt quickly.”
The expansion will generate more than 80 new US jobs, increasing the company’s American workforce to over 120 employees. Ecorobotix currently employs more than 300 people worldwide.
$50 million US investment to accelerate precision spraying adoption
Over the next three years, the company will invest $50 million to scale operations, refine its technology for North American cropping systems, and support wider deployment across the US.
“Ecorobotix will invest $50 million to expand US operations and deliver our Swiss‑engineered ultra‑high precision agriculture technology to American farmers,” said Dominique Mégret, CEO of Ecorobotix. “Assembling ARA in Kansas allows us to work closely with local partners while strengthening our ability to serve growers across North America.”
Spraying only what needs to be sprayed
At the core of Ecorobotix’s expansion is the company’s Plant‑by‑Plant AI™ technology, an ultra‑precise system designed to identify crops and weeds in real time and dose crop protection products only where required.
ARA uses a combination of:
- 156 nozzles across the boom, delivering a 2.4″ x 2.4″ target zone
- RGB and 3D cameras in each module
- A decade‑long global library of crop and weed imagery
- A working speed of 4.5 mph, faster than non‑spray robotic technologies
The system activates spray pulses within milliseconds, dramatically reducing herbicide and other product use while maintaining crop performance.
US universities helping develop new crop algorithms
To ensure its AI remains tailored to US production realities, Ecorobotix is working with universities across the country to build new region‑specific “crop algorithms”. These models help the sprayer distinguish between look‑alike species and manage the unique crop–weed interactions of American fields.
“We are very excited about our grass seed, sod and turf algorithms – some released this year, others almost ready,” the spokesperson said. “Our AI can identify varieties of grass on grass, such as poa annua in Kentucky bluegrass, and spray it in a quarter of a second.”
New algorithms for tomatoes and cucurbits are also under development, with release dates to be announced.
A strategic step toward global growth
The Kansas assembly site is a cornerstone in Ecorobotix’s broader global strategy: combining Swiss engineering, local manufacturing, and region‑specific agronomy to make ultra‑high precision crop protection accessible to growers around the world.
As climate pressures, input costs and regulatory scrutiny rise, the company believes its plant‑level precision approach will give American growers a competitive edge, and help define the next wave of precision agriculture.
