Tortuga harvesting robots

1. 5

   Regulator-cleared or mass market

   A regulator has cleared it where approval applies: FDA clearance or approval for a medical robot, a permit to run with no one aboard for a self-driving vehicle, or an FAA approval for routine drone flights. Or: Widely sold: sales in the hundreds of thousands, or a product category you can buy in ordinary shops.

2. 4

   Paying customersThis robot

   Delivered to customers who pay for it, beyond a trial, or a paid service the public can use.

   Placed by: Tortuga rented out its robots as a service and was paid by the kilo for the fruit they picked (8 April 2021).

3. 3

   Pilot

   Working with a named customer in a real setting, as a trial.

4. 2

   Pre-orders

   Orders, reservations or deposits taken, with nothing delivered yet.

5. 1

   Demo only

   Shown in videos, staged events or a factory, with no units working for customers.

What we couldn't confirm. Sources did not name Tortuga's outdoor or greenhouse customers before the sale, and we could not confirm whether any Tortuga robots still work for other growers. Its total funding is given as about $50 million (AgFunderNews) or $55 million (The Packer).