Adam Stager
61 posts
Adam Stager
@adamstager
Founder @TRICRobotics 🚜 | We're replacing chemical pesticides with UV light + autonomous robots 🌱 | PhD Robotics | Building robots that do physical work
Santa Barbara, CA Katılım Mayıs 2013
18 Takip Edilen48 Takipçiler
@adamstager @BonnieBlueTK Adam what wavelengths do you utilize
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I need to know more about this process!
Danny Bernstein@bernsteind
autonomous robot driving through the field at night. no chemicals. no pesticides. just UV light killing pathogens and pests while everyone sleeps. this is @tricrobotics. this is what chemical-free pest control looks like at scale.
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@pmarca 100%. Bringing new innovation to our food systems means more resilience, healthier food, and a cleaner environment. What we're building at @tricrobotics unlocks all three and is ready for the farm right now.
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@rehadiscioglu @tricrobotics Thanks for connecting! I sent you a chat here on X.
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@adamstager @tricrobotics Hi Adam, what is the best way to reach out?
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We started @tricrobotics to help farmers grow healthier, more sustainable food for everyone. In just a few years, we’ve gone from early pilots to a fleet of tractor-scale robots using UV light and bug vacuums on some of the largest strawberry farms in California.
We've treated tens of thousands of acres and we’re doubling our fleet every year. Every machine means less reliance on chemical pesticides, better tools for growers, and a more resilient food system for everyone.
It’s not just about the robots. It also takes a great team. Reach out if you want to help us build the future of agriculture!
Danny Bernstein@bernsteind
autonomous robot driving through the field at night. no chemicals. no pesticides. just UV light killing pathogens and pests while everyone sleeps. this is @tricrobotics. this is what chemical-free pest control looks like at scale.
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@donandcecilia1 @bernsteind @tricrobotics That’s so cool! If you'd like I’d be happy to help introduce UV light and robotics to your students with a short kid-friendly video or quick Zoom Q&A.
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@bernsteind @tricrobotics I am going to show this to my K to 4th-grade STEM class. We study UV light in our light unit and robotics and autonomy in our plant unit. What a great way to introduce both.
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autonomous robot driving through the field at night. no chemicals. no pesticides. just UV light killing pathogens and pests while everyone sleeps. this is @tricrobotics.
this is what chemical-free pest control looks like at scale.
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@lifeof_jer @bernsteind @BitcoinPierre @tricrobotics Thanks for asking! Each machine treats about 30 acres per night and can service up to 90 acres throughout a season. It's a sweet spot for strawberries since they are generally planted on ranches smaller than 100 acres.
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@lisapinjh @bernsteind @tricrobotics Great questions! We provide the solution as a service that replaces existing chemical costs, so farmers get the benefit/ROI right away. We also started in strawberries where farmers have some of the biggest pest and disease challenges.
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@bernsteind @tricrobotics What does that machine cost, and how many acres and which crops make breakeven on the purchase in less than 10 years?
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@wink_nod @bernsteind @meep_meep_speed @tricrobotics This is super important for our team at @tricrobotics. We needed to validate the technology on larger farms first. Now we have the tools we need to circle back and help smaller farms too! We also deliver our solution as a service which makes it much easier for farmers to switch.
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@bernsteind @meep_meep_speed @tricrobotics How does the family farm compete with this? Are there companies that offer to use this equipment on their fields❤️🥺. Smaller versions they can buy? I am all for progress i just do not want to lose a way of life for many.
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@zaptrapped @bernsteind @elindburg @tricrobotics That's right! Scientists and researchers from @USDA_ARS and @Cornell did all of the original research that led to @tricrobtoics bringing the technology to the farm. It's amazing to see the tech get out of the lab and make it onto commercial farms.
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@bernsteind @elindburg @tricrobotics USDA/Cornell confirm it reduces chemical pesticide use by up to 70% for specialty crops while maintaining yields.
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UV-C light damages DNA of targeted pathogens (mildew, mold) & pests (spider mites), stopping replication. Robots apply it at night straight to the crop canopy.
Friendly critters: Most pollinators (bees) are inactive then. Direct exposure can hit some insects/microbes, but it's far more precise than broad chemical sprays that wipe out beneficials + leave residues. No persistence, supports IPM, and cuts overall pesticide use—net positive for ecosystems. They also add bug vacuums.
Research shows it's effective & plant-safe. Solid step forward.
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@ImNoBetterThanU @tricrobotics Thanks!! We started with larger farms and now we have the tools we need to start bringing this technology to smaller farms too. Thats's really important to us. We also charge as a service that replaces existing spray costs, so it's easy for farmers to switch.
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OK...this is pretty cool! @tricrobotics
Too bad this would be far out of reach for most farmers. Hopefully technological advances can solve that issue.
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UV-C from TRIC's robots does hit pest mites & eggs hard (33% fewer spider mites in trials), but their data shows no negative impact on beneficial predatory mites.
Eggs of both pests & predators are vulnerable, so best practice is early UV suppression + timed release of adult predators (they're tougher & keep working).
Nighttime canopy targeting limits effects on bees & larger beneficials vs. broad chemicals.
Overall, it's a net win for IPM & reducing sprays.
Exciting tech — more data coming from Cal Poly/USDA trials.
Danny Bernstein@bernsteind
autonomous robot driving through the field at night. no chemicals. no pesticides. just UV light killing pathogens and pests while everyone sleeps. this is @tricrobotics. this is what chemical-free pest control looks like at scale.
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Of all the companies we’ve ever invested in, TRIC robotics definitely has some of the most interesting product videos 🍓
Danny Bernstein@bernsteind
autonomous robot driving through the field at night. no chemicals. no pesticides. just UV light killing pathogens and pests while everyone sleeps. this is @tricrobotics. this is what chemical-free pest control looks like at scale.
English
@RossDynamicsLab That's right! Automation was a big unlock in terms of getting the right amount of light to the plants.
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Very interesting approach. Required UV dose depends on the pathogen, but could be tuned, depending on the crop.
Danny Bernstein@bernsteind
autonomous robot driving through the field at night. no chemicals. no pesticides. just UV light killing pathogens and pests while everyone sleeps. this is @tricrobotics. this is what chemical-free pest control looks like at scale.
English
@PNWthistle @Cready_Stomp23 This is probably the most important part of bringing tech like this to the farm. Now that we figured out how to make the economics work at large-scale, we have the tools we need to bring it to smaller farms. That's next!
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@Cready_Stomp23 Yeah, I heard they’ve got a lot of new tech for other crops. We’re on our way to solutions. We just have to figure out a way to help the farmers afford to do it.
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I heard each of these cost about a million. That’s not practical for a lot of farmers. There has to be an answer to getting these accessible for all farmers.
Danny Bernstein@bernsteind
autonomous robot driving through the field at night. no chemicals. no pesticides. just UV light killing pathogens and pests while everyone sleeps. this is @tricrobotics. this is what chemical-free pest control looks like at scale.
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@SteveSkojec Isn't it crazy how futuristic the future is going to look!
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I drove by a golf course yesterday where a big robot mower was just driving itself around.
As a kid immersed in sci-fi and comic books I dreamed of commonplace scenes like this. Just never thought I'd actually see them.
Danny Bernstein@bernsteind
autonomous robot driving through the field at night. no chemicals. no pesticides. just UV light killing pathogens and pests while everyone sleeps. this is @tricrobotics. this is what chemical-free pest control looks like at scale.
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@RebelRancher @angelatytran @tricrobotics Thanks! It's farmers like you who help technologies like this get to the world. 😀
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@adamstager @angelatytran @tricrobotics Sounds great! If you need a place to test it out, let me know 🙃
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Amazing if it’s affordable but guessing probably not accessible to the little guys. Will look into & report back…
Danny Bernstein@bernsteind
autonomous robot driving through the field at night. no chemicals. no pesticides. just UV light killing pathogens and pests while everyone sleeps. this is @tricrobotics. this is what chemical-free pest control looks like at scale.
English
@KommanderE6960 @nayibbukele @tricrobotics I think everyone will! We started with strawberries where farmers have the most pest and disease challenges. It took a few years to get the technology to commercial scale and now its growing fast.
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@adamstager @nayibbukele @tricrobotics Why isn't everybody adopting this great invention? In El Salvador tens of thousands suffer from kidney failure due to pesticides dripping into the water table and people drinking from water wells.
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The key to saving the environment is not looking backward, it’s moving forward.
I realized this the first time I visited Italy twenty years ago. Everything was clean and green. The rivers sparkled. The lesson for me was obvious: the answer is not underdevelopment. The answer is progress.
When China was poor, the air was so polluted that people could barely see the blue sky. Today, blue skies have returned to their cities. Development does not only create wealth, it also provides the resources needed to restore and protect the environment.
Some environmentalists want us to preserve every aspect of our biodiversity, including the mosquitoes for example, so that researchers can fly in once every ten years from their universities (which build particle accelerators and billion-dollar laboratories with their pocket money), study our ecosystems, and count how many people died from dengue outbreaks.
They want to buy our air through carbon credits. If carbon credits were such a great deal, they would be selling them to us, not the other way around.
Cleaning every river, lake, and water source in El Salvador, and ensuring they remain clean and sparkling, would cost roughly $12 billion. Where is that money supposed to come from without economic development? Carbon credits?
The path forward for our country is the path of Japan and Singapore, not the path of the Congo.
Danny Bernstein@bernsteind
autonomous robot driving through the field at night. no chemicals. no pesticides. just UV light killing pathogens and pests while everyone sleeps. this is @tricrobotics. this is what chemical-free pest control looks like at scale.
English