Originally published on the UCANR Blog

Student innovators to design, build and field-test robotics for real-world agriculture challenges

The Farm Robotics Challenge, the only collegiate agricultural robotics competition of its kind, is officially launching its 2026 season. Registration is now open for undergraduate and graduate student teams from two-year and four-year colleges and universities across the United States and worldwide.

The competition tasks students with designing, prototyping and field-testing robotics and AI-driven solutions to tackle real challenges facing modern agriculture. The Challenge is organized by UC ANR Innovate, the innovation arm of University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources, in partnership with the AI Institute for Next Generation Food Systems (AIFS).

“What makes the Farm Robotics Challenge unique is that students work directly with farmers to identify and solve real problems,” said Gabe Youtsey, chief innovation officer at UC ANR and founder of UC ANR Innovate. “Teams are developing practical solutions growers can put to work, and the hands-on experience prototyping and field-testing prepares students for careers in agricultural technology, while helping address some of the pressing challenges our growers face today."

Lead sponsor Reservoir to award Grand Prize investment

The Challenge is pleased to announce a partnership with the Reservoir, a leading early-stage venture capital investor and robotics incubator dedicated to accelerating real-world agricultural technology. The Reservoir joins this year as a lead sponsor, bringing with it a commitment to help student innovations leap from concept to commercialization.

As part of this partnership, the Reservoir will award a $50,000 Grand Prize investment to the winning team. This seed funding goes beyond a traditional competition prize, as it provides a powerful springboard for turning student-built prototypes into market-ready solutions with real agricultural impact.

“The future of agriculture will be shaped by deep tech innovators who can move quickly from lab to field,” said Danny Bernstein, CEO of the Reservoir. “The Farm Robotics Challenge brings together the kind of early-stage talent we’re eager to back – engineers, scientists and entrepreneurs with the vision to tackle real problems and the grit to commercialize their solutions. By pairing this year’s $50,000 Grand Prize investment with our on-farm incubation and venture support, we aim to help these prototypes evolve into scalable companies delivering breakthrough technologies for growers.”

Central to the competition is the expectation that student teams work directly with growers to identify prominent issues in agriculture that could be addressed using advanced robotics, AI and automation.

"With this challenge, teams can target a broad range of agricultural activities, such as planting, weeding, harvesting, pest management and crop monitoring, as well as focused projects in data collection, mapping and on-farm automation," said Steve Brown, associate director of the AI Institute for Next Generation Food Systems.

Teams are encouraged to design and prototype solutions, using robotic platforms equipped with autonomous navigation systems, intelligent algorithms and custom attachments to address real-world agricultural problems. These projects are field-tested, ensuring that they are not only theoretically sound but also practically viable in production agriculture environments.

Supported by leading technology partners such as Bonsai Robotics, the competition places strong emphasis on innovation, hands-on learning and collaboration with growers.

“For the past four years, we’ve partnered with UC ANR Innovate and AIFS on the Farm Robotics Challenge because we believe the future of farming depends on the next generation of innovators. There are big problems to solve in how we grow our food, and we want these inventive, engineering minds focused on them,” said Brendan Dowdle, chief business officer at Bonsai Robotics. “Our robotics platform makes it easier to design, test and deploy AI, computer vision and autonomous systems. Every year, we’re inspired by the creativity and technical skill these students bring to the field, and the ideas just keep getting bigger. We can’t wait to see what they build next.”

Prizes offered as part of multi-phase competition cycle

The competition unfolds across several stages, beginning with the registration period starting in August, followed by a team formation and proposal research phase through October. Project proposals must be submitted by October 30, 2025.

Teams then embark on a six-month development and testing phase, culminating in final project submissions due on May 3, 2026.

The competition concludes with an awards ceremony set for May 20, 2026.

Participation in the Farm Robotics Challenge offers numerous benefits. The competition will award over $100,000 in prizes across multiple categories, and select teams will be offered travel stipends to showcase their projects at FIRA USA, North America’s leading ag tech conference. Beyond the prizes, all participants gain access to a network of academic and industry professionals dedicated to building the future of farming.

Throughout the competition, educational webinars will be available to help students stay informed about industry trends, develop entrepreneurial skills and gain valuable insights on topics such as intellectual property, company formation and venture capital financing, presented by experts from Morrison Foerster.

“We are excited to partner with UC ANR Innovate and AIFS on the Farm Robotics Challenge,” said Michael Ward, co-head of the Morrison Foerster Food and Ag Practice. “To ensure that teams get their industry-changing ideas off the ground, it is critical that they have a solid understanding of the legal issues that arise when launching and growing a startup company in this field.”

The webinars will feature interactive sessions designed to introduce teams to the legal knowledge needed to start and grow a business, protect their innovations and navigate the challenging regulatory landscape.

“We will offer free confidential office hours to all competition participants to answer legal questions and provide guidance on moving their ideas into a company and taking steps to commercialization,” said Mitchell Presser, co-head of the Morrison Foerster Food and Ag Practice.

Throughout the competition, student teams develop practical skills at the intersection of technology and agriculture, expand their professional networks and engage with a distinguished panel of evaluators and innovators.

Past competitions have featured over 40 teams from across the U.S. and abroad, with previous winners including UC Davis, University of Georgia, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, and Olin College of Engineering.

For those interested in participating, prospective teams are advised to assemble members with a range of technical expertise and secure a faculty or staff advisor. The next step is to partner with a grower to identify a meaningful agricultural problem and then design and rigorously test a solution using advanced robotics and AI.

Comprehensive information, official rules and regular updates can be found on the Farm Robotics Challenge website. You can also register to participate in the Farm Robotics Challenge Info Session Webinar on September 10 at 4 p.m. (PDT).

New for the 2025-26 academic year is the Farm Robotics Academy, intended for secondary school students. The Academy aims to equip both educators and students with knowledge and skills in leading-edge technologies that are reshaping the agricultural landscape. Learn more at https://www.farmroboticsacademy.ai/.

Farm Robotics Challenge

The Farm Robotics Challenge is organized by UCANR Innovate and the AI Institute for Next Generation Food Systems (AIFS), with lead support from the Reservoir, technology partner Bonsai Robotics, as well as Western Growers, Morrison Foerster, F3 Innovate, Taylor Farms, Beck’s Hybrids, Google.org, the California Tomato Research Institute, Linak U.S., and Plug and Play. The competition challenges college-level teams to identify and solve real-world agricultural problems using advanced robotics technology.

For more information about the Farm Robotics Challenge, including details on how to participate or sponsor, visit https://farmroboticschallenge.ai.

UCANR Innovate

UCANR Innovate brings together people, resources and ideas to accelerate agricultural, food and biotech innovation in California. UC ANR Innovate develops practical technologies, generates research and policy insights, prepares a future-ready workforce and builds the ecosystems and partnerships that make innovation possible: locally, regionally and globally. For more information, visit https://www.ucanrinnovate.io/.

The AI Institute for Next Generation Food Systems

The AI Institute for Next Generation Food Systems (AIFS) is a USDA-National Institute of Food and Agriculture-funded research institute leveraging artificial intelligence to solve the world’s biggest challenges to crop and food production: ensuring a sustainable, nutritious, efficient and safe food supply while mitigating the impacts of changing conditions. For more information, visit https://aifs.ucdavis.edu.

The Reservoir

The Reservoir is a startup incubator and venture capital fund focused on helping ag tech startups succeed where agriculture happens—in the field. Reservoir Farms is the world’s first on-farm robotics incubator, starting in the Salinas Valley and expanding to other key regions like the Central Valley. Reservoir Ventures backs startups solving real problems in high-value crops. By combining R&D space, hands-on grower input and early-stage capital, the Reservoir helps turn promising ideas into tools for the growers who feed the world. Learn more at https://reservoir.co.

Bonsai Robotics

Bonsai Robotics is reimagining the agricultural industry with its AI-first platform that makes autonomous farming affordable, easy to use, and deployable across all farm equipment – whether retrofitted onto existing machines or built into next generation solutions. Its acquisition of farm-ng in 2025 combines its leading, vision-based autonomy software with modular, electric robotics to deliver next-generation machines adaptable for a wide range of crops, tasks and environments. Bonsai empowers growers to monitor and manage all farm equipment — new or legacy, autonomous or not — through a single, intuitive app. Learn more at www.bonsairobotics.ai.

Morrison Foerster

Morrison Foerster is a leading global law firm, with clients including some of the most innovative companies – from trailblazing startups to Fortune 100 enterprises. Morrison Foerster is the firm for Food + Agriculture, representing stakeholders across the value chain, from scientists in labs optimizing plant genetics, to farmers nurturing crops, to ag tech pioneers revolutionizing farm technology, to CPG companies and global brands selling your favorite foods. With unmatched scientific depth and deep sector knowledge, Morrison Foerster has helped shape the sector for over two decades. For more information, visit www.mofo.com.