Caterpillar Inc. has acquired electric autonomous tractor startup, Monarch Tractor, according to Bloomberg News. A once-promising tech startup, Monarch was considered the "Tesla of agriculture" because of its electric, self-driving tractors.
Founded in 2018 by a team that included Tesla alum Mark Schwager and winemaker Carlo Mondavi, Monarch was among several startups seeking to substitute fuel-intensive heavy machinery with electric alternatives.
However, Monarch had struggled to scale the business and was forced to make layoffs in recent months. In a LinkedIn post, Monarch said that it had shifted away from manufacturing to a technology licensing model.
Videos of the self-driving tractors on Monarch's YouTube page show the wide range of incredible capabilities these tractors possess.
According to Monarch's website, an MK-V tractor could save farmers $18,000 per year on operational costs and reduce their diesel usage by 2,100 gallons. The electric tractor boasted a runtime of up to 14 hours before needing to be recharged, with a charge time of five to six hours.
Caterpillar, which has seen its stock rise about 30% in 2026 amid an overall struggling economy, already has its business operating at a major scale and surely believes it can make more effective use of Monarch's tech.
Unfortunately, Monarch represents the latest climate tech startup to encounter difficulties in commercializing its solutions aimed at reducing pollution. Due in part to strong political headwinds that have slowed growth opportunities, green cement startup Sublime Systems recently laid off a significant portion of its workforce, while battery recycler Ascend Elements filed for bankruptcy.
Though climate tech investments rose slightly in 2025 over the previous year, most funding clustered around a limited number of areas related to data center expansions. Investor sentiment appears less optimistic regarding green startups focused on agriculture.
Data from BloombergNEF indicates that globally, venture capitalists invested $1.3 billion in agriculture-centric clean tech last year, roughly one-third of the 2022 total. In the first quarter of this year, the sector received only $141 million in equity financing, marking a 50% decline from the rolling four-quarter average.
Once valued at over $500 million, Monarch raised a total of $251 million from investment firms such as Astanor Ventures, At One Ventures, and HH-CTBC Partnership L.P., a Foxconn affiliate, according to Pitchbook data.
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"Monarch's core technology, including our software-defined vehicle platform, perception stack, and electrification systems, has been acquired by a large global equipment manufacturer," Monarch stated in the LinkedIn post. "It means the technology will continue to move forward."
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