# Robotic Apple Harvester by CNH Industrial (Case IH / New Holland, Raven) Canonical page: https://technooptimist.io/agriculture/apple-harvester Frontier: [Agriculture](https://technooptimist.io/agriculture.md) · Field: Harvesting robots · Company: [CNH Industrial (Case IH / New Holland, Raven)](https://technooptimist.io/companies/cnh.md) Stage: Proto (2 of 5: Research → Proto → Pilot → Deploy → Scaling) Updated: last update 2026-09-29, facts checked 2026-10-11 Goal: Pick apples by machine in modern 'fruit wall' orchards. Washington's apple harvest depends on a shrinking, costly seasonal workforce, and picking is the last big orchard job still done almost entirely by hand. Status: CNH resumed limited private trials at WSU's Roza orchard near Prosser, Washington, in fall 2026. Next milestone: Limited private trials resume at WSU Roza orchard, target Sep 2026 ## Milestones | Status | Milestone | Date | Slip | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Done | Washington growers pilot the harvester in the 2024 season | 2024 | | | Done | advanced.farm runs out of money; 2025 season cancelled | Mar 2025 | | | Done | CNH agrees to acquire advanced.farm's assets and IP | Apr 2025 | | | Current | Limited private trials resume at WSU Roza orchard | Sep 2026 | | ## Upcoming events - **Sep 2026**: Limited private trials resume at WSU Roza orchard ## Most important updates - **29 Sep 2026**: CNH to resume limited trials of the former advanced.farm apple harvester at WSU's Roza orchard. At a Washington State University field day near Prosser, researchers showed WA 64 apple trees pruned hard in late September to expose fruit for CNH's robot. ([our story](https://technooptimist.io/stories/cnh-to-resume-limited-trials-of-the-former-advanced-farm-apple-f2310595.md) · [original source](https://goodfruit.com/a-robot-compatible-cultivar/)) - **2 Apr 2025**: CNH agrees to acquire the assets and IP of robotic apple-picker startup Advanced Farm. CNH, an early investor in Advanced Farm, agreed to buy the startup's assets and intellectual property and take on most of its technical team. ([our story](https://technooptimist.io/stories/cnh-agrees-to-acquire-the-assets-and-ip-of-robotic-apple-picker-startup-b68788ef.md) · [original source](https://www.therobotreport.com/cnh-acquires-intellectual-property-assets-advanced-farm/)) - **20 Mar 2025**: advanced.farm halts work on its robotic apple harvester and cancels its 2025 Washington season for lack of funding. Davis, California startup advanced.farm closed and laid off its team after failing to raise money for another season, scrapping plans to pick apples in Washington in 2025. ([our story](https://technooptimist.io/stories/advanced-farm-halts-work-on-its-robotic-apple-harvester-and-cancels-its-98e6b4db.md) · [original source](https://goodfruit.com/citing-funding-shortfall-advanced-farm-shuts-down-work-on-apple-harvester/)) ## Current obstacles - **Money ran out before commercial launch**: advanced.farm shut down in March 2025 after failing to fund another season; the project now depends on CNH's commitment. - **Orchards must be shaped for the robot**: Trees are pruned into flat walls so cameras and grippers can reach fruit; WSU is testing which varieties and pruning suit robot harvest. ## Physics limits - **Fruit hidden behind leaves can't be picked**: A camera only sees what is in its line of sight, and an arm can only reach along a clear path. Apples buried in foliage are missed, which is why robots need flat, open canopies. - **A short season has to pay for a costly machine**: Apples are picked over a few weeks a year. Every pick is a see-plan-reach-detach cycle, so the machine must run long hours at a high hit rate to beat crew costs. ## How it works ### See: Cameras find ripe fruit Vision guidance spots apples on the tree and picks targets for each arm. ### Pick: Six arms with suction cups Each arm reaches in, a soft suction cup locks onto the apple and the arm pulls it free, so fingers never squeeze the fruit. ### Drive: Self-driving down the row The machine drives itself along orchard rows and handles the fruit bins automatically. ## Spec sheet | Spec | Robotic Apple Harvester | Provenance | | --- | --- | --- | | Picking arms | 6 | reported | | Pick rate (2024 field trials) | ~2,500 apples/hour (company figure) | reported | | Gripper | Vacuum suction cup | reported | | Best suited to | High-density 'fruit wall' orchards | reported | Provenance: reported = stated by the company; estimated = our estimate; sample = a sample figure. ## About CNH Industrial (Case IH / New Holland, Raven) CNH Industrial manufactures agricultural equipment under Case IH and New Holland brands. It acquired Raven Industries in November 2021 to add autonomous and precision agriculture capabilities for tillage, harvest and grain carts. - Case IH (1842) and New Holland merged in 1999 to form CNH Global, serving global agriculture. - Acquired Raven Industries in November 2021 for $2.1B to add autonomous and precision capabilities. - OMNiDRIVE retrofit and OMNiPOWER platform enable driverless and remote-operated field work. - Founded: 1999 - Headquarters: GB - Status: public - Listing: CNH (NYSE) - Staff: ~34,197 - Website: https://www.cnh.com - People: Gerrit Marx (President & CEO) - Partners, customers, investors: Raven Industries (acquirer) Company page: https://technooptimist.io/companies/cnh.md ## Related programs More from CNH Industrial (Case IH / New Holland, Raven): - [Raven Autonomy (OMNiDRIVE / Driver Assist)](https://technooptimist.io/agriculture/raven-autonomy.md) (Deploy) Everything in Agriculture: https://technooptimist.io/agriculture.md --- The Techno Optimist tracks every frontier of technology, program by program: https://technooptimist.io/ (a Markdown version of any page: add .md to its URL; site map for agents: https://technooptimist.io/llms.txt). 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