How Autonomy Will Reshape Ag Equipment – And Why Shortliners Must Act Now
When you think about game-changing innovation in agriculture, you probably picture big iron, groundbreaking hybrids, or GPS auto-steer. But in today’s rapidly evolving landscape, autonomy is the next frontier—and it’s not coming, it’s already here.
In a recent episode of The Germinate Podcast, host Joe Sampson sat down with Colin Hurd, the serial entrepreneur behind Mach, a company building modular autonomy solutions for equipment manufacturers. Their conversation wasn’t just about robotics or AI—it was a deep dive into why labor is the #1 constraint in ag, and how smart autonomy can solve it.
And most importantly for shortline OEMs: the time to act is now.
From Tillage to Tech: Colin’s Entrepreneurial Roadmap
Colin Hurd’s journey didn’t begin in Silicon Valley—it started in Iowa, where he was homeschooled and began working for a local farmer. That practical experience would later shape his perspective as he founded his first company while still in college at Iowa State University.
His first startup tackled pinch row compaction—a tillage attachment that helped distribute planter weight. What started as a class project turned into a real business, later licensed to Yetter Manufacturing. It was a hard-earned education in building hardware, understanding customer pain points, and facing product failure head-on.
Then came Smart Ag, his second startup, which developed an autonomous grain cart system—one of the first true applications of autonomy in North American ag. It allowed a combine operator to “call” a driverless tractor with a cart, unload on the go, and send it back—all without a second person in the cab.
Smart Ag was eventually acquired by Raven Industries in 2019.
Why Autonomy Isn’t Optional Anymore
During the episode, Colin laid out the real problem: labor shortages. And not just in quantity—but in quality, too.
Modern farms have larger equipment, tighter planting windows, and fewer qualified people to operate them. As Colin put it:
“If every farm had infinite labor, they could run smaller, lighter equipment—and compaction wouldn’t even be an issue.”
But they don’t. And they won’t.
Autonomy solves this. But building rugged, reliable, and safe autonomous solutions takes time, capital, and engineering horsepower that most shortline OEMs don’t have in-house. That’s where Mach comes in.
What Is Mach?
Mach is a company providing factory-integrated autonomy to off-highway equipment manufacturers—especially in agriculture. Their tech stack works across different machines, use cases, and environments.
Instead of building from scratch (which Colin estimates would take 5 years and $10 million), Mach acquired two existing tech companies and combined them to offer:
Visual-based steering systems
Full-path planning and obstacle detection
Implement monitoring and behind-the-hitch automation
Scalable hardware + software integration for OEMs
And their goal is simple: help OEMs automate faster and smarter without needing a Silicon Valley-sized team.
Why Shortliners Are Perfectly Positioned—If They Move Fast
Joe and Colin agreed on a powerful point:
“Shortliners have always succeeded by moving faster than the majors.”
They’re more agile, closer to their customers, and can make decisions without going through layers of corporate red tape. But many shortline OEMs still hesitate on automation, citing complexity or past bad experiences with tech.
Colin’s response?
You don’t need to go fully autonomous from day one. Start with assistive automation—like steering or implement alerts.
Build for the operator. Use smartphone-style interfaces that anyone from Grandpa to Gen Z can figure out.
Don’t ignore the wave—adapt now, or someone else will eat your lunch.
The Writing on the Wall: Autonomy Is Already Here
Autonomous cars are becoming a reality. In fact, Tesla and others are piloting models that can park themselves, run errands, and return—all without a driver.
Farm equipment is following close behind.
But unlike the road, agriculture has its own complexities: seasonality, crop diversity, field variability. That’s why generalized, plug-and-play autonomy won’t cut it. It needs to be rugged, specialized, and built with ag in mind.
Mach’s approach? Build a modular, flexible autonomy platform that OEMs can tailor to their own implements and customers.
For OEMs and Dealers: Now’s the Time to Build Partnerships
Whether you’re a shortline OEM, a regional dealer, or a startup founder in ag, here’s the key message:
Autonomy is not a feature—it's the future.
If you don’t offer it, someone else will. But the good news is, you don’t need to go it alone. Mach is one of the few companies working specifically with OEMs to make this technology accessible, scalable, and field-tested.
Learn More & Connect
Want to learn more about Mach and what they’re building?
Visit: https://mach.io
Contact Colin directly: colin@mach.io
Or check out the podcast episode for the full conversation:
The Germinate Podcast with Joe Sampson – Episode featuring Colin Hurd
Final Thoughts
In a world where labor is scarce, timelines are tight, and expectations are rising, equipment manufacturers can no longer rely on “dumb iron.”
Innovation is no longer optional—it’s the engine of survival.
And as Colin reminds us, you don’t have to be a billion-dollar company to lead the charge. You just need the right technology partner and the courage to move.
The train is leaving the station. Will your company be on it?
