UK agtech firm Antobot plans to deploy 300 autonomous UV-C robots across strawberry fields next year, banking that non-chemical disease control has crossed a commercial threshold with growers.

The robots substitute UV-C light for fungicide spray passes, damaging the DNA of powdery mildew and other fungal pathogens so they cannot replicate. Marc Jones, Antobot's VP commercial, told AgFunderNews on the sidelines of the World Agri-Tech Innovation Summit in London that early field data shows meaningful cuts to chemical programs.

"We're getting great results, big reductions in chemical spraying and also, interestingly, quite good increases in yield," Jones said. "Some of that is obviously from having less disease, but also we're seeing that the canopy in general is healthier."

How does Antobot fit a crowded UV-C field?

Saga Robotics, TRIC Robotics and CleanLight already operate competing platforms, with TRIC running a 15-robot fleet across 1,500 strawberry acres. Antobot previously sold directly to named customers including Driscoll's and Tiptree but is now constructing distributor channels.

"We've signed distributor agreements in the UK and Spain. We're looking at Canada and we've set up a joint venture in Asia," Jones said.

The company operates in six geographies: the UK, Spain, Portugal, the Netherlands, Canada and parts of Asia. It was founded in 2019 by Ke Lu, PhD, and Howard Wu, PhD.

What changes about the sales model next year?

Until this year Antobot ran exclusively on a robots-as-a-service basis — absorbing upfront cost for growers while keeping maintenance responsibility. That structure gets harder to handle at higher volumes, Jones said.

"But as you grow, this model gets more challenging, so next year we're going to move most of our customers over [to owning the machines and running them internally]," he said. Capital-equipment grants in the UK and Spain reduce the upfront bill and make the shift workable for mid-size farms, he added.

Why does UV-C win in some markets and not others?

Regional buyers buy for different reasons, according to Jones:

• UK: retailer and consumer pressure over pesticide residues rewards "chemical-free" claims
• Asia: legacy chemistries are failing against pathogens; UV-C fills the gap
• Spain: both dynamics apply, given UK exports and domestic sustainability mandates
• Canada: strawberry farms often run just two to three hectares, too small for conventional sprayers

Better disease control is also letting growers expand planted acreage. "In some cases, improved disease control is also giving growers greater confidence to expand production because it reduces the risk of having to shut down part-way through the season," Jones said.

What have the first commercial seasons revealed?

Hardware reliability matters, but the harder lessons are logistical. Tractors blocking routes, locked gates and changed access codes force operators to rethink daily routines, Jones said. Antobot has since adopted swappable batteries and simplified the suspension.

Some growers already operate more than 10 machines, supervised by one person. The robots carry scouting modules that count fruit, measure size and maturity, and push yield forecasts into packhouse planning.

Where does the next dollar come from?

Antobot has funded itself through grants, a small seed round led by Intron Technology Holdings, and operating revenue. The next stage requires outside capital.

"We're looking for growth capital now we've got traction," Jones said. "I think we've got a good story, a good customer base and a good platform for scaling."

If Antobot hits the 300-unit 2027 target, the company will have to convert service customers to buyers fast enough to maintain margins in the UK and Spain, absorb new Canadian accounts, and ramp its Asian joint venture into field operations — all without the recurring-service cushion the old model provided.