John Deere and Kubota are addressing industry labor shortages through autonomous AI

LAS VEGAS — The United States Department of Agriculture reported the average age of all U.S. farm producers was 58 in 2022, continuing a long-term trend of aging in the U.S. producer population.

Why does that matter? The people who produce our food are slowly aging out of the business, and there isn't a steady enough supply of farm workers to account for the demand.

This, of course, creates problems with the U.S. and the world's food supply needs.

"Every year, (farmers) are looking for 2.5 million farm workers," said Gaurav Bansal, vice president of engineering and autonomy at Blue River Technology, a fully owned subsidiary for John Deere.

Bansal has an important role in addressing this issue and believes automation is the best way to aid farmers and quell the labor gap.

Yes, self-driving equipment.

"When you go and ask a farming customer, 'Do you need an autonomous tractor?' typically, their answer would be a one-word question: 'When can I get it?'" Bansal explained.

The same labor plight faced by the farming industry is also being felt by contractors and landscaping business owners, too, with Bansal saying 88% and 86%, respectively, report having difficulties finding labor.

"Our agriculture, construction and commercial landscaping customers all have work that must get done at certain times of the day and year, yet there is not enough available and skilled labor to do the work," said Jahmy Hindman, chief technology officer at John Deere. "Autonomy can help address this challenge. That's why we're extending our technology stack to enable more machines to operate safely and autonomously in unique and complex environments. This will not only benefit our customers but all of us who rely on them to provide the food, fuel, fiber, infrastructure and landscaping care that we depend on every day."

But how in the world can tractors and other equipment run safely, efficiently and effectively without a human behind the wheel?

The answer is years of work.

"(Over) the last few years, we have collected over a billion images, and we have been in many, many farms, and using that, we have made these machine learning models," Bansal said.

This has led to two types of machine learning models: a segmentation model that identifies what the machine is seeing and a depth model that says how far things are.

One example is the autonomous 9RX Tractor designed for large-scale agriculture. The second-generation autonomy kit on that machine features 16 individual cameras arranged in pods to enable a 360-degree view of the field. This allows farmers the luxury of stepping away from the machine and focusing time on other important jobs.

John Deere unveils autonomous tractors, orchard sprayers, mining trucks, and mowers at CES, addressing labor shortages with advanced technology and improved obstacle avoidance systems.#engineering#InterestingEngineering#CES#CES2025#AutonomousTractors#smartfarmingpic.twitter.com/kHMRtWzORN

— Interesting Engineering (@IntEngineering) January 7, 2025

The advanced autonomy kit also calculates depth more accurately at larger distances, allowing the tractor to pull more equipment and drive faster.

On the commercial landscaping side, John Deere's autonomous battery electric mower leverages the same camera technology as other Deere machines, but on a reduced scale (two cameras on the front, left, right and rear — good for 360-degree coverage) since the machine has a smaller footprint.

So far, Bansal said the reaction to autonomous machines from farmers, contractors and landscapers has been "super positive."

John Deere is also making this technology as accessible as possible to its customers.

"Farmers can take their tractor to their dealer and have these (automation) kits installed on their vehicle," Bansal said, noting that this only applies to tractors and equipment built in the last few years that has the controls to be ready for automation.

This means that in some instances, farmers won't have to purchase entirely different machines to adopt automation.

"The way we think about the price is, it's the value that we're adding. For customers, getting their time back, having that peace of mind that the job will be done even if they were not able to find labor," Bansal said.

But John Deere isn't the only company working to advance farming and other industries through AI and automation.

Kubota also made waves at the 2025 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, with its KATR winning the Best of Innovation award in the industrial equipment and machinery product category.

The four-wheeled all-terrain, multifunctional robot maintains a level cargo deck when working on uneven terrain and can work autonomously or remotely to tackle a range of versatile applications in agriculture and construction environments.

Kubota autonomous robot farm machines. This robot never tilts no matter what terrain so it can carry anything without spilling. Also a self driving crop duster and a tiller. CES 2025. pic.twitter.com/2jXugY87KQ

— Michel (@Mic_VegasSphere) January 7, 2025

"Right now, there's real needs in agriculture, and so we're really focused in this area. Labor shortages, you're seeing weeds that are resistant to pesticides and herbicides, and so we're applying technology to solve these real-world problems," said Brett McMickell, chief technology officer for Kubota North America.

Another example from Kubota is its KFAST Autonomous Sprayer, a fully autonomous chemical sprayer that uses AI to scout to identify pests and sprays with precision to lessen spray drift and overuse. The result reduces labor and the use of chemicals in the field.

"We believe that truly listening to our customers drives innovation in every aspect of what we call the 'Work Loop,'" McMickell said. "'The Work Loop' — an essential cycle of assessing, analyzing and acting — has always been fundamental to effective task management. With the integration of advanced sensors, AI-driven analysis, networking protocols, automation and robotics, we are enhancing this cycle to be more seamless and efficient than ever before."

Like John Deere, Kubota also showcased the Agri Concept 2.0, an electric tractor offering data, AI, automation and electrification as a choice of powertrain for when farmers want to drive and autonomous operation when they don't.

"The demand is there. We've got real problems with our food supply and we need help. We can't do it all alone," McMickell said.

You can learn more about John Deere's high-tech applications for agriculture and more here, as well as Kubota's.

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