Five Star Cooperative, an Iowa-based agricultural cooperative, has partnered with TerraClear to deploy AI-powered field intelligence across 110,000 acres. The rollout begins with 10,000 acres of rock mapping in 2026, expanding to 100,000 acres of weed mapping using TerraClear's autonomous TerraScout system in spring 2027. TerraClear's technology enables farmers to find up to three times more rocks and remove them three times faster, reducing rock-picking costs by an estimated $20 per acre. TerraScout provides plant-level field insights, identifying weeds by species and density whilst delivering real-time maps and recommendations. The system processes data on-site, delivering results before leaving the field. TerraClear will supplement TerraScout with drone-based data collection to ensure consistent coverage during peak seasons.

TerraClear has appointed Eric Rombokas as Director of Robotics and Hardware to lead the development of autonomous systems for large-acre row crops. Rombokas brings over 15 years of experience in developing autonomous systems for complex environments. An Affiliate Associate Professor in Mechanical Engineering and Electrical & Computer Engineering at the University of Washington, Rombokas specialises in perception, control and machine learning. At TerraClear, he will focus on advancing field autonomy for the TerraScout platform and scaling sensing systems for real-time farm operations. The appointment comes as the Issaquah-based company expands its autonomous capabilities in agriculture, aiming to provide growers with dependable tools for transforming field data into actionable insights.

TerraClear has launched TerraScout, a fully autonomous robot that collects ultra-high-resolution imagery across entire fields and converts it into prescriptions for existing farm equipment. The robot can map over 1,000 acres daily at speeds up to 15 mph with a 60-foot mapping swath. Founded in 2017, TerraClear has mapped nearly one million acres and served over 1,000 farm operations. TerraScout captures images at 1mm resolution, collecting over four billion samples per acre, and processes data in real-time using onboard computing. Operating autonomously for up to six hours, it can work day or night with artificial lighting. The technology currently focuses on rock and weed management, delivering five to 10 times return on investment. Field trials began earlier this year, with limited commercial release planned for autumn 2026.