Safety
Three federal lawsuits by dealers questioned whether the tractors worked as sold. One dealer complaint said the tractors could not run on their own indoors.
A crash, recall, injury or investigation
What the source says
“questions about the efficacy of its existing technology are front and center in three different federal lawsuits”
What it means
Monarch MK-V, from Monarch Tractor (Zimeno Inc.), is at stage 4 of 5 on our ladder: paying customers. Safety events don't move a stage on their own, but they stay on the robot's record.
Human help: The maker hasn't said whether people help it remotely.
More on Monarch MK-V
- TechCrunch reported, citing US patent office filings, that Caterpillar acquired Monarch's assets after Monarch handed its affairs over for the benefit of its creditors (a way of winding up a company outside bankruptcy court).
- Monarch auctioned off its equipment in February 2026 and left its research site in Livermore, California, which is now up for lease.
- Monarch said it had shipped about 500 tractors in total.
- Monarch warned staff it might lay off more than 100 employees and could shut down, as it tried to switch to selling software instead of tractors.
- Monarch lost its contract manufacturer, Foxconn, in 2025.
- Monarch raised at least $220 million in total, including $133 million in 2024.