John Deere Reveals New Autonomous Machines & Technology at CES 2025

Rhea-AI Summary

John Deere (DE) unveiled several new autonomous machines at CES 2025, expanding its autonomous technology portfolio across agriculture, construction, and commercial landscaping sectors. The company introduced a second-generation autonomy kit featuring 16 cameras for 360-degree field views and enhanced depth calculation capabilities.

Key innovations include the Autonomous 9RX Tractor for large-scale agriculture, Autonomous 5ML Orchard Tractor for air blast spraying (with both diesel and future electric versions), 460 P-Tier Autonomous Articulated Dump Truck for quarry operations, and an Autonomous Battery Electric Mower for commercial landscaping. These developments address critical labor shortage challenges, with statistics showing 2.4 million unfilled farm jobs annually, 88% of contractors struggling to find skilled labor, and 86% of landscaping businesses facing hiring difficulties.

The machines can be managed through the John Deere Operations Center Mobile platform, offering features like live video, real-time metrics, and remote notifications for maintenance issues.

Positive

• Introduction of comprehensive autonomous machine lineup addressing multiple industry sectors
• Second-generation autonomy kit with advanced features including 16-camera system
• Factory-ready autonomy and retrofit options providing flexible adoption paths
• Cloud-based mobile platform integration for remote management and monitoring

Negative

• None.

Insights

Technology Analyst

John Deere's unveiling of second-generation autonomous machines represents a significant technological leap in industrial automation. The new autonomy kit's 16-camera system with 360-degree visibility and enhanced depth perception capabilities marks substantial progress from their 2022 offering. The integration of advanced computer vision and AI across multiple vehicle types - from large-scale tractors to commercial mowers - demonstrates scalable autonomous technology architecture.

The cloud-based Operations Center Mobile platform introduces a sophisticated yet user-friendly control interface, enabling remote monitoring and real-time adjustments. This centralized management system positions Deere strategically in the industrial IoT space, creating valuable data streams for future AI optimization.

Market Research Analyst

The strategic timing and breadth of this autonomous rollout directly addresses critical labor shortages across multiple sectors: 2.4 million annual farm job openings, 88% of contractors facing skilled labor shortages and 86% of landscaping businesses struggling with staffing. By offering both factory-ready autonomous machines and retrofit kits, Deere creates multiple revenue streams while lowering adoption barriers. The inclusion of electric options, particularly in the orchard tractor segment, aligns with growing sustainability demands and potential regulatory changes.

Industrial Automation Expert

The technical specifications of these autonomous systems indicate a mature technology ready for real-world deployment. The addition of Lidar sensors for orchard operations and specialized camera configurations for different vehicle sizes shows sophisticated environmental adaptation. The ability to retrofit existing machines is particularly noteworthy, as it provides an upgrade path for Deere's substantial installed base while protecting customer investments. This could accelerate market penetration and establish Deere as the de facto standard in autonomous agricultural and construction equipment.

Autonomy will support Deere customers across agriculture, construction, and commercial landscaping 

MOLINE, Ill., Jan. 6, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- John Deere revealed several new autonomous machines during a press conference at CES 2025 to support customers in agriculture, construction, and commercial landscaping. Building on Deere's autonomous technology first revealed at CES 2022, the company's second-generation autonomy kit combines advanced computer vision, AI, and cameras to help the machines navigate their environments.

While each of these industries experiences their own set of challenges, a commonality across all is skilled labor availability.

• Agriculture: the American Farm Bureau Federation also estimates there are roughly 2.4 million farm jobs that need to be filled annually.
• Construction: Eighty-eight percent of contractors struggle to find skilled labor.
• Commercial Landscaping: 86% of landscaping business owners can't find labor to fill open positions.

"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."

Autonomy Expanding to More Machines:

• Autonomous 9RX Tractor for Large-Scale Agriculture: Tillage is one of the busiest times of the year for farmers. With the second-generation autonomy kit, featuring 16 individual cameras arranged in pods to enable a 360-degree view of the field, farmers can step away from the machine and focus their time on other important jobs. The advanced autonomy kit also calculates depth more accurately at larger distances, allowing the tractor to pull more equipment and drive faster.
• Autonomous 5ML Orchard Tractor for Air Blast Spraying: Protecting crops through air blast spraying is a challenging and repetitive job. Featuring the latest autonomy kit with added Lidar sensors to address the dense canopies found in orchards, the initial machine will be offered with a diesel engine. A battery electric tractor of comparable size and capacity to existing diesel 5M/ML models on the market today will follow. 
• 460 P-Tier Autonomous Articulated Dump Truck (ADT) for Quarry Operations: Quarries supply the essential raw materials vital for building roads, buildings, and infrastructure, and it's a complex process to mine, process, and transport materials. Using the second-generation kit, the ADT will handle the repetitive tasks of transporting material around the quarry to facilitate different steps in the cycle.
• Autonomous Battery Electric Mower for Commercial Landscaping: Commercial landscaping is a highly competitive industry and having the staff to support different bids is essential. The autonomous commercial mower leverages the same camera technology as other Deere autonomous machines, but on a reduced scale since the machine has a smaller footprint. With two cameras on the front, left, right, and rear, 360-degree coverage is achieved, and staff can focus on other aspects of the job.

Select machines will be autonomy ready from the factory and the second-generation perception system will be available as a retrofit kit for certain existing machines, providing customers with multiple paths to adoption based on where they are in their technology journey.

The machines are managed via John Deere Operations Center Mobile, the company's cloud-based platform. By swiping left to right to start, the machine can be started once placed in the appropriate spot. Through the app, users also have access to live video, images, data and metrics, and the ability to adjust various factors like speed. In the event of any job quality anomalies or machine health issues, users will be notified remotely so they can make necessary adjustments.

Ways to Connect with John Deere at CES 2025 
The fully autonomous machines will be on display from January 7-10, 2025 at John Deere's CES booth #5016, located in West Hall at the Las Vegas Convention Center. The booth will also showcase cutting edge technologies customers across industries are taking advantage of, like connectivity, AI, renewable fuels, and electrification.

John Deere will also participate in three panel discussions on Wednesday, January 8:

• At 9 a.m., Deanna Kovar, President for the Worldwide Agriculture & Turf Division at John Deere will speak on a panel titled, "Tech Without Borders: The Benefits of Tech for all Communities." The discussion will take place in the Las Vegas Convention Center's North Hall, Level 2, N258.
• At 1 p.m., Sarah Schinckel, Director of Emerging Technologies in the Intelligent Solutions Group (ISG) at John Deere will speak on a panel titled, "AI or Die? Why Farms Must Embrace the AI Revolution to Survive." The discussion will take place in the Las Vegas Convention Center's West Hall, Level 2, W218.
• At 3 p.m., Gaurav Bansal, VP of Engineering at Blue River Technology (a John Deere company) will speak on a panel titled, "Robot Farm 2050: A Look at Robotics & The Future of Farming." The discussion will take place in the Las Vegas Convention Center's West Hall, Level 2, W218.

About Deere & Company 
Deere & Company (NYSE: DE) is a global leader in the delivery of agricultural, turf, construction, and forestry equipment. We help our customers push the boundaries of what's possible in ways that are more productive and sustainable to help life leap forward. Our technology-enabled products including John Deere Autonomous 8R Tractor, See & Spray™, and E-Power Backhoe are just some of the ways we help meet the world's increasing need for food, shelter, and infrastructure. Deere & Company also provides financial services through John Deere Financial.

For more information on Deere & Company, visit us at www.deere.com/en/news/.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

Certain statements contained in this press release relate to future events, expectations, and trends which constitute "forward-looking statements" as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and involve factors that are subject to change, assumptions, risks, and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially. Some of these risks and uncertainties could affect all lines of the company's operations generally while others could more heavily affect a particular line of business.

Forward-looking statements are based on currently available information and current assumptions, expectations, and projections about future events and should not be relied upon. Except as required by law, the company expressly disclaims any obligation to update or revise its forward-looking statements. Many factors, risks, and uncertainties could cause actual results to differ materially from these forward-looking statements. Among these factors are risks related to:

• changes in and compliance with U.S., foreign and international laws, regulations, and policies relating to data privacy, environmental (including climate change and engine emissions), autonomy, and farming policies;
• the ability to execute business strategies, including the company's Smart Industrial Operating Model, Leap Ambitions, and mergers and acquisitions;
• the ability to understand and meet customers' changing expectations and demand for John Deere products and solutions;
• the ability to integrate new technology, including automation and machine learning, and deliver precision technology and solutions to customers;
• changes to governmental communications channels (radio frequency technology);
• the company's equipment fails to perform as expected, which could result in warranty claims, post-sales repairs or recalls, product liability litigation, and regulatory investigations;
• security breaches, cybersecurity attacks, technology failures, and other disruptions to John Deere information technology infrastructure and products;
• loss of or challenges to intellectual property rights;
• legislation introduced or enacted that could affect the company's business model and intellectual property, such as right to repair legislation;

Further information concerning the company and its businesses, including factors that could materially affect the financial results, is included in the company's filings with the SEC (including, but not limited to, the factors discussed in Item 1A. "Risk Factors" of the company's most recent Annual Report on Form 10K). There also may be other factors that the company cannot anticipate or that are not described herein because the company does not currently perceive them to be material.

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SOURCE John Deere Company

FAQ

What new autonomous machines did John Deere (DE) announce at CES 2025?

John Deere announced four new autonomous machines: the 9RX Tractor for large-scale agriculture, 5ML Orchard Tractor for air blast spraying, 460 P-Tier Autonomous Articulated Dump Truck for quarries, and an Autonomous Battery Electric Mower for commercial landscaping.

What features does John Deere's second-generation autonomy kit include?

The second-generation autonomy kit features 16 individual cameras arranged in pods for 360-degree field views, enhanced depth calculation capabilities, and improved navigation in complex environments.

How can operators control the new John Deere autonomous machines?

Operators can control the machines through the John Deere Operations Center Mobile platform, which provides live video feeds, operational metrics, speed adjustments, and remote notifications for maintenance issues.

Will John Deere's autonomous technology be available for existing machines?

Yes, the second-generation perception system will be available as a retrofit kit for certain existing machines, while select new machines will come autonomy-ready from the factory.

What labor challenges is John Deere addressing with these autonomous machines?

The machines address labor shortages across sectors, including 2.4 million unfilled farm jobs annually, 88% of contractors struggling to find skilled labor, and 86% of landscaping businesses unable to fill open positions.