Bloomberg senior correspondent, Kyle Stock, features Monarch Tractor in his Bloomberg article, “Electric Tractors Fuel New Era” for agriculture and pointing out how electric tractors are finally getting the Tesla treatment.
"A crop of electric startups are hitting the $292 billion heavy machinery market just in time for harvest," Stock writes. Monarch Tractor, the world’s first fully electric, driver-optional, smart tractor manufacturer, announced the closing of its $20 million Series A funding round. The round includes global industrial equipment manufacturers, automotive suppliers, venture capital, and impact capital. The new investors will support the rapid growth of Monarch Tractor’s global deployment.
The investment round garnered global reach led by Musashi Seimitsu Industry Co., Ltd., a Japan-based global auto parts company, CNH Industrial, a worldwide leader in agricultural and on- and off-road industrial equipment, and VST Tillers Tractors Ltd., an Indian tractor and implement company. The round also includes At One Ventures, a Silicon Valley venture capital fund, and MUUS, a sustainability-focused private capital group.
“The food ecosystem is ready for transformation with farmers demanding sustainable tools that can increase efficiency and farm profitability. Thus, we have seen an incredible and accelerating demand for our Monarch Tractor,” said Praveen Penmetsa, CEO, Monarch Tractor. “The strategic investments by global leaders like CNH Industrial validate the Monarch Tractor platform’s broad application globally and beyond farm products. We are excited to have a group of investors who share a commitment to supporting the sustainable development of agriculture and positive global impact on farm economics and sustainability.”
“Monarch is pioneering tractor technology that incorporates electrification, autonomous use, and data management. These are three of the key pillars supporting sustainability, productivity, and profitability, both for CNH Industrial and for our farming customers,” said Scott Wine, CEO, CNH Industrial. “We are incredibly excited to work with Monarch to develop and deploy their groundbreaking technology ecosystem, which we believe has applicability across our entire Off-Road business.”
Monarch’s award-winning tractor has seen increased global demand since launching in December of 2020. The company has received widespread accolades including winning a 2021 BIG Innovation Award, “2020 Tractor of the Year” in the AgTech Breakthrough Awards, was named one of World Ag Expo’s “Top 10 Best New Products,” and recognized in Fast Company’s “Best World-Changing Ideas: North America, Energy and Food.”
“It’s an exciting time for agtech with the powerful convergence of traditional farming and cutting-edge technology,” said Dennis Muilenburg, investor and advisor, Monarch Tractor. “Monarch Tractor is leading the way, delivering on an ambitious effort to make farming smarter, greener and safer than ever before. With the support of the investment community, Monarch Tractor is poised to achieve its mission to empower today’s farmers and enable the transition to more productive, precise and sustainable farming practices.”
