VINE Connect Field Day at UC Merced (September 17)
- Natasha Biasell
- Aug 13
- 2 min read
Updated: Sep 4
On September 17, 2025, VINE Connect Field Day will take place at the UC Merced Experimental Smart Farm. This farmer-focused event offers a hands-on opportunity to see cutting-edge agricultural technologies in action, live and in the field. Growers, researchers, and ag professionals will come together to explore practical solutions to some of California’s most urgent farm challenges, from labor shortages and water use efficiency to disease detection and orchard management.
Attendees will experience live demonstrations from startup teams participating in the VINE Connect commercialization program. Each company was selected for its potential to address high-priority challenges facing California growers. The Field Day offers a unique opportunity to see these technologies in action, ask questions directly to the teams behind them, and provide feedback to guide future development. It’s a hands-on morning of agricultural innovation, built for and shaped by the needs of California’s farming community.
Lineup of Companies:
Aigen: Solar-powered autonomous robot that mechanically removes weeds and gathers crop insights, delivering chemical-free weed control and clean-energy operation.
Almondry: On-site stockpile aeration dryers that rapidly dry almonds off the orchard floor, reducing harvest dust and improving nut quality and turnaround time.
Bonsai Robotics Amiga: Electric, modular field robot that automates seeding, weeding, spraying, and data capture. Still the Amiga you know, now backed by Bonsai Robotics.
Good Agriculture: AI-driven financial and compliance platform that streamlines bookkeeping, grants, loans, and insurance for farms.
Senseen: Hand held plant scanner combining spectroscopy and AI for instant nutrient and stress diagnostics, enabling real-time, data-driven fertilizer and irrigation decisions.
Spornado: Solar powered field sampler trapping airborne spores to warn of crop diseases before symptoms appear, enabling more precise data driven spraying.
VGrid: Portable biomass gasifiers turning agricultural waste into renewable power, carbon-sequestering biochar, and natural smoke derived biostimulant products.
Date: Wednesday, September 17, 2025
Time: 8:30 AM – 11:30 AM (Pacific Time)
Location: UC Merced Experimental Smart Farm, 5200 North Lake Road, Merced, CA 95343
Cost: Free to attend
Who Should Attend: Central Valley farmers and growers, farm managers, PCAs, agricultural industry professionals, researchers, and anyone interested in agtech innovation.
Hosted By: This event is brought to you by UC ANR Innovate, UC Agriculture and Natural Resources, Farmhand Ventures, UC Merced, the Experimental Smart Farm, and the Valley Institute for Sustainability, Technology & Agriculture (VISTA).
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