The Spanish startup Voltrac emerged from Stealth with an autonomous tractor that leads a double life.
In peace times, the 3.5-ton electric vehicle drew up for farming, dragging heavy goods and using cameras to collect data on harvesting. However, if the tractor is entered, it is equally able to navigate enemy attacks in order to provide critical care on the front of the front.
“In Ukraine, for example, many lives are lost in non -combat situations, including the reorganization of Frontline,” said the co -founder of Voltrac and CTO, Francisco Infante Aguirre, in an interview with TNW. “Here we see a machine like ours that make a difference: it is built for hard terrain, and it does not risk human life. It can do the same job as to whether it transports plants or bears ammunition.”
The CEO and co -founder of Voltrac, Thomas Hubenetets (left) and co -founder and CTO Francisco Infante Aguirre, are in front of her office in Valencia. Credit: Voltrac
The Voltrac machine has a load capacity of 4,000 kg, a top speed of 40 km/h and a number of up to 20 hours thanks to several large 200 kW batteries that are stored in his body. The batteries of the tractor are interchangeable like an eBike – except that these batteries are so heavy that they need a forklift to transport them.
The tractor is delivered with the standard tow cooler, in which farmers would usually attach devices such as plows, mowers or tailors. The machine can also be retrofitted with a huge flat bed with which you can transport a container full of supplies. This is useful for farms and front links.
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“Our tractor only needs tiny changes to its hardware to easily use agriculture and defense markets from the same platform,” said Infante, adding that the startup takes place in preliminary discussions with the NATO departments. For military purposes, these “improvements” include the addition of anti-jamming tech and interceptor drones to protect them from enemy attacks. The machine could also be used to remove and identify mines.
As you have probably noticed in the meantime, the tractor has no cabin. This is because it can pilot itself – or at least the plan for later. At the moment the vehicle is remotely controlled, a bit like a view (FPV) from the first person (FPV) drone. Voltrac plans to have human control several tractors from a remote location station. As soon as the company receives the regulatory green light, it plans to let the machines drive themselves.
In addition to self-suffering, Voltrac's system will carry out in the “Live experiments” field. The tractor will easily try different agricultural treatments in different areas, observe how the plants react and adapt its approach to the next pass. Over time, this constant feedback loop helps the right dose of water, fertilizer or pesticide for every land stain. This could lead to higher yields, lower costs and fewer chemicals in the ground.
“We not only build a more intelligent tractor – we build a system that learns how it works. This is one of the big differences to other intelligent tractors out there” Thomas Hubenetensen said to TNW.
The resume of intercourse includes Jobs Building Ai-Systeme at BMW and Google X. The Dutch co-founded Extropic, a startup building based in Austin A. New way From Ai -Chip to Nvidia.
In the meantime, Aguirre, an aerospace engineer, had in line Hyper -shell level Startup Destinus and now bankrupt flying taxi company Volocopter. However, his connection to tractors is deep: his family's business, Aguirre Agricola, is one of the largest agricultural providers in Spain.
Lubricate and aguirre combined their expertise with the founding of Voltrac a little more than a year ago. The startup quickly secured $ 2 million in prepared funds from antlers and foodlabs, causing them to build their first prototype.
Voltrac aims to develop its tractors and the underlying hardware and software stacks in the house. The vehicles are mainly built from off-the-shelf components. Thanks to your electrical drive train and the lack of a cabin, you use 70% fewer parts than a conventional tractor.
The startup is aimed at a seed round in September and plans to deliver its first vehicles in early 2026.
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