The AgTech Startup Perspective to Farmers Ex Ante Acceptance Process of Autonomous Field Robots

Abstract

Autonomous vehicles not only provide a new impetus in the development of car models in the automotive industry—even in agriculture there has recently been talk of autonomous field robots (AFR). Great expectations are placed on these digital assistants from a wide variety of perspectives. However, it is still unclear whether they will make the transition from market niches to broad-based distribution. Apart from various factors, this depends on user acceptance of this new technology expected by the innovators, since this is likely to be essential for the further development of AFR. For this purpose, the ex ante user acceptance of farmers from the perspective of various AgTech startups with AFR involvement in Europe was investigated in this exploratory and qualitative study. The Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) served as the basis for the developed interview guideline. In summary, the results confirm that a variety of factors potentially influence farmer acceptance and AFR diffusion from the perspective of AgTech startups, with perceived usefulness being considered the main motivation for using AFR. The interviewed experts believe that AFR will initially be used in crops that have relatively high costs for crop protection treatments before becoming economically attractive for other crops. The basic prerequisite for a successful market launch is an adjustment of the legal framework, which sets standards in relation to AFR and thus, provides security in the production process. The results could support political decision-makers in dealing with this new technology and AFR manufacturers in the promotion of AFR.

How much can farmers pay for weeding robots? A Monte Carlo simulation study

“…The implication of our result is consistent with the findings by Rübcke von Veltheim et al ( 2020 ) and Spykman et al ( 2021 ). The higher MAVs of weeding robots in organic farming mean that organic farms (especially for high-value crops) can pay much more for weeding robots to obtain the current profit level, thus having a stronger economic incentive to adopt autonomous weeding robots than conventional farms.…”

“…Thus, it is reasoned that small autonomous machines can become cost-competitive for less capital-intensive processes like tillage and seeding. Interviews with AgTech startups conducted by Rübcke von Veltheim et al ( 2020 ) reveal the expectation that field crop robots would first be implemented in specialty crops and organic farming as the economic case for conventional farming is not yet strong enough. They also predicted that farms with larger fields would adopt field crop robots sooner than farms with small fields, irrespective of total acreage, due to logistic costs.…”

Farmers’ acceptance of robotics and unmanned aerial vehicles: A systematic review

“…The TAM model, first proposed by Davis (1989) and Davis et al (1989), was used by Caffaro et al (2020), von Veltheim and Heise (2020), and Michels et al (2021. The TAM has been criticized mainly for its simplicity and low explanatory power, but the model is still used extensively (Shachak et al, 2019;Weng Marc, 2018).…”

Sustainability-Oriented Macro Trends and Innovation Types—Exploring Different Organization Types Tackling the Global Sustainability Megatrend

“…This may be explained by their ability to adapt faster to changing consumer preferences [67], especially in the food sector [68][69][70]. This may give rise to innovations such as innovative (organic) pest control systems, genetic adaptations of plants, and high-tech solutions such as farm robotics [70], vertical farming methods [20], or field robotics [71]. These new innovative methods and processes in the agricultural and food sector may primarily be tackled and driven forward by startups in the first place.…”