Daedong announced January 9 that it will launch an AI tractor in Korea equipped with vision artificial intelligence (AI)-based unmanned autonomous operation technology.
Daedong developed the AI tractor to address rural aging and labor shortages, creating a machine that can perceive its surroundings and perform farming tasks independently. The company aims to implement a new work structure where robots handle farm operations while humans focus on supervision and decision-making.
The AI tractor utilizes on-device AI that makes judgments and executes tasks within the machine itself without relying on cloud computing. This enables real-time path generation, obstacle response, and operation control in the field, allowing stable autonomous work regardless of communication conditions. Additionally, six camera-based vision AI systems analyze the surroundings in 360 degrees to identify field boundaries, obstacles, and implements.
The AI tractor can be remotely controlled and monitored through an app, maintaining consistent work quality even without an operator on board or with an inexperienced operator. With a single touch on a smartphone at the field entrance, the tractor autonomously handles most farming tasks from implement recognition to path generation and execution, with all processes managed remotely.
Another key feature of the AI tractor is its ability to improve performance through self-learning data. Based on MLOps (Machine Learning Operations), it accumulates path, obstacle, and environmental data generated during operations, learns from this information, and applies it to subsequent tasks. All data is automatically recorded in Daedong's "Operation Center," enabling work history management, field information verification, and data-driven decision-making for farm management.
Daedong plans to introduce the AI tractor sequentially in global markets including North America and Europe. The company targets a North America launch in 2027, followed by expansion into Europe. To this end, it has been conducting field tests in North America since last year to localize autonomous operation functions.
"The AI tractor is not simply a tractor without a driver, but an agricultural field robot that performs farming tasks on its own," said Na Young-jung, Executive Vice President of Daedong Group Management. "Starting with the AI tractor, Daedong will continue to expand AI and robot-based agricultural solutions that create real value in the field, leading the future autonomous farming market."