Global agricultural manufacturing giant, John Deere, recently acquired California based agritech firm GUSS Automation in a move to bring high value crop autonomy portfolio to the company. The acquisition of GUSS Automation expands on an existing joint venture established in 2022 and supplements John Derre’s commitment to accommodate high value crop growers concerns over labor availability, input costs and crop protection.
GUSS brings a proven solution to a fast-growing segment of agriculture, and its team has a deep understanding of customer needs in orchards and vineyards. We’re excited to have them fully part of the John Deere team.
Founded in 2018, GUSS stands for global unmanned spray system, specializing in autonomous sprayers powered by GPS, LiDAR and proprietary software to facilitate navigation and herbicides spraying in orchards and vineyards. The autonomous sprayers can be supervised by a single operator who can manage up to eight machines at once. The precision based application system is designed reduce operator error, labour costs and material waste. As per the company, till date more than 250 machines have been deployed globally, spraying across 2.6 million acres in 500,000 autonomous hours.
Expanding GUSS Automation’s Capabilities
Earlier, John Deere and GUSS Automation instituted a joint venture in 2022 deploying several vehicles, including an autonomous herbicide orchard sprayer called Electric GUSS. John Deere aims to expand GUSS’s innovation and market potential by integrating John Deere’s precision agriculture capabilities like Smart Apply, designed for chemical and water saving targeted spraying.
Also Read: Shunya Agritech Launches Viability Assessment Report to Support Rural Fodder Entrepreneurs
As per GUSS COO, Gary Thompson, the partnership will enable the firm to utilize unmatched precision agricultural capabilities of John Deere, simultaneously expanding GUSS’s reach worldwide. He further added that it will provide a big boost to high value crop growers in increasing operational efficiency and productivity.
In 2024, GUSS had integrated use of John Deere Power Systems engines to its power sprayers. As per agreement, the company will maintain use of its name. branding, employees, along with its manufacturing facility in Kingsburg, California, while it will be sold and serviced through exclusive dealers of John Deere.
Building Autonomous Proficiency
John Deere recently unveiled its autonomous building block, including its connectivity service link JDLink, an autonomous perception system, along with StarFire 7500 receiver G5 CommandCenter and G5 advanced. The products were showcased at 2025 Farm Progerss Show in Decatur III., which took place through August 26-28. The autonomous building blocks aim to assist farmers in testing the capabilities of automation technologies. The company has also deployed a cloud based Operational Service center, where farmers can manage their equipment.
The partnership between John Deere and GUSS Automation has the potential to strengthen manufacturing footprint at the heart of US high value crop production market and scale automation to increase efficiency, boost crop yields, improve sustainability, and enhance food security.
