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Cornerstone presentations at North America's largest event on emerging technologies cover how new technologies are addressing world's biggest needs

Agricultural robotics can upend several commonly-held notions. Amongst them is the idea that big is better. In practise this has translated into ever larger and more powerful agricultural machinery. This makes sense because a big machine amplifies the capabilities of the skilled driver, dramatically boosting its productivity. This notion may however be about to experience a fundamental change. The reason is that the driver can now finally be taken totally out of the equation.

The RaaS model, increasingly trendy in the world of robotics, is becoming commonplace in agricultural robotics too.

Crop protection, chemicals and robotics at first appear totally unrelated, yet IDTechEx Research finds that steady improvements in agricultural robotics will, slowly but surely, fundamentally alter the crop protection chemicals business.

Robot vehicles may give the insurance companies and car companies something to do when one robot taxi replaces 20 cars owned by private individuals as we move inexorably to 80% of people living in cities in 2050.

The first industrial robot, Unimate, went into operation at a General Motors plant in 1961. Over the next few decades the use of industrial robot arms in the automotive industry matured.