Award recognizes a new generation of autonomous crop protection as Thorvald scales across 2,500 acres of U.S. vineyards and 30% of UK strawberries
Paso Robles, CA, Aug. 21, 2026 – Saga Robotics today announced that its Thorvald autonomous platform has been named Overall Agriculture Robotics Solution of the Year in the 7th annual AgTech Breakthrough Awards, recognizing innovation across the global agriculture technology industry.
Selected from thousands of nominations submitted from around the world, the award recognizes Thorvald’s autonomous UV-C crop protection system and its growing commercial role in helping growers manage fungal diseases such as powdery mildew while reducing reliance on conventional fungicide programs.
The award comes as Thorvald continues to scale its commercial deployment across specialty crops. In 2026, the platform is treating approximately 2,500 acres of wine grapes in the United States and approximately 30% of the UK’s tabletop strawberry production.
“This award is recognition of a much bigger shift happening in agriculture,” said Caine Thompson, General Manager, U.S, Saga Robotics. “For decades, disease management has meant applying more chemicals with heavier machinery. Thorvald gives growers another path: autonomous, electric machines using light to protect crops at commercial scale. What we are seeing now is Farming with LightTM moving from an idea into a new production system, allowing growers to truly start regenerating their land with the removal of chemicals, carbon and soil compaction.”
The recognition follows Saga Robotics being named a Rising Star in the 2026 THRIVE Top 50 AgTech Report by SVG Ventures | THRIVE earlier this year, adding to growing industry recognition of the company’s approach to autonomous, low-impact crop protection.
Thorvald uses precisely delivered UV-C light at night to suppress fungal diseases including powdery mildew. Rather than relying solely on chemicals, the lightweight, electric platform moves autonomously through the crop, delivering light directly to the canopy to control diseases.
Winegrowers are already seeing the technology translate into visible results in the vineyard.
Greg Gonzalez, Director of Viticulture at Bien Nacido Vineyards, which has worked with Thorvald for two seasons, said of the 2026 crop:
“This is the best looking and cleanest fruit I’ve seen in my 20-year career. We are cleaner than ever before, and the only difference is the robots.”
The combination of commercial scale and grower results is helping position Thorvald not simply as another agricultural robot, but as a fundamentally different approach to crop protection.
“Thorvald offers the first proven, autonomous alternative to traditional chemical treatments. More tasks on the farm can now be handled by robots. However, most modern AgTech developments may add autonomy to conventional heavy diesel machinery, which reduces labour costs, but does little to address chemical dependency, soil compaction, or carbon emissions” said Bryan Vaughn, Managing Director, AgTech Breakthrough.
“Saga Robotics has built something different. Thorvald introduces a smarter approach; lightweight, autonomous passes let growers act sooner, treat precisely, and lower their environmental footprint. We’re thrilled to award Saga Robotics with ‘Overall Agriculture Robotics Solution of the Year.’”
The recognition comes as agricultural robotics enters a new phase. Rather than simply automating the tractors and spray systems of the past, Saga Robotics is developing a different production model: lightweight, electric machines operating autonomously and frequently, replacing chemical- and diesel-intensive interventions with precision technologies such as UV-C light.
For Saga Robotics, the opportunity extends beyond automation itself. The company’s vision is to enable growers to protect yield and crop quality while reducing chemical inputs, carbon emissions and soil compaction, creating a farming system that is both more precise, lighter on the land that can accelerate sustainable, organic and regenerative farming.
About Saga Robotics
Saga Robotics is leading the transition from chemical and carbon intensive agriculture toward a new generation of electric, autonomous, low impact farming systems.
Through its Thorvald platform, Saga is pioneering Farming with LightTM, using precisely delivered UV-C light to control crop disease, reduce reliance on chemical fungicides and eliminate many of the heavy tractor passes traditionally required throughout the growing season.
Purpose-built for vineyards and soft fruit, Thorvald combines autonomous field operations with continuous crop intelligence to help growers produce healthier, higher-quality crops with significantly fewer chemical inputs and lower carbon emissions.
The result is a new standard for agriculture: crops that are Light GrownTM grown with light, lighter on chemicals, lighter on carbon and lighter on the land.
Saga Robotics is redefining how food is grown: cleaner, smarter and built for the future of farming.
