Robotic Agtech Startup That Seeks To Revolutionize Agriculture Cuts Workforce In Half

Robotic agriculture company Iron Ox laid off 50 workers or nearly half of its workforce this week, the Bay Area-based company confirmed Thursday. The company, which raised nearly $100 million last year due to its promising processes of growing crops, said the layoffs were implemented to renew its hyperfocus on core goals.

Widespread layoffs were implemented this week on the company's staff of "just over 100 people," TechCrunch reported. Fifty jobs were cut, according to the outlet. The roles terminated were those "that are not core to our renewed focus," Iron Ox's Chief Legal Officer Myra Pasek said in a statement published by the outlet Thursday.

Pasek explained that the layoffs "was a painful decision," further noting that the agtech firm has "always hired world-class talent," and she is "confident that the individuals we unfortunately had to cut this week will have many options open to them."

While the company did not provide further details on which core goals it will focus on after the layoffs, Pasek said there were no plans to wind down.

In September 2021, Iron Ox announced a $53 million Series C funding round that was led by Bill Gates-founded investment firm Breakthrough Energy Ventures (BEV), bringing the company's total funding to $98 million.

At that time, co-head of BEV's investment committee Carmichael Roberts said Iron Ox "is uniquely positioned to accelerate the shift towards climate-friendly agriculture."

Iron Ox launched autonomous farming in 2018, saying its agriculture processes capitalized on "a data-driven approach backed by plant science, robotics and artificial intelligence."

Earlier this year, the company expanded its farming operations in Lockhart, Texas. At that time, Iron Ox CEO Brandon Alexander said the company secured agreements with local companies to sell its leafy greens and basil, local KVUE reported.

Alexander previously told CNBC that Iron Ox has different robots tending to plants in its greenhouses. Among the processes that robots complete are scanning for potential issues and adjusting the necessary amounts of water that the plants should get.

Iron Ox's products are available through several retailers such as Mollie Stone's Markets, Good Things Grocery, Wheatsville Food Co-op and Whole Foods.

Founded in 2015, Iron Ox is just one of the tech companies that implemented layoffs this week. Stripe laid off more than a thousand workers, Twitter is set to lay off thousands of employees Friday, and Amazon as well as Apple announced hiring freezes amid a global economic downturn.