Reservoir Farms, Sonoma Named Flagship Collaboration in Sonoma County Winegrowers' Farm of the Future Initiative
SANTA ROSA, Calif., Dec. 3, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Sonoma County Winegrowers and Reservoir today announced the launch of Reservoir Farms, Sonoma - the world's first on-farm robotics and automation hub for viticulture located in the heart of California wine country.
As a flagship collaboration under the Sonoma County Winegrowers' Farm of the Future initiative and building on the success of Reservoir's inaugural "Olympic Village of AgTech" site in Salinas, Reservoir is extending its model to California's Wine Country to drive the development and deployment of automation and advanced robotics for vineyards and premium permanent crops like wine grapes. Launched by Sonoma County Winegrowers in 2022, the Farm of the Future serves as an open invitation for innovators and growers to collaborate, pilot new technologies, and share impactful practices to advance sustainability and climate adaptation across Sonoma County's certified winegrowing operations.
"Sonoma County Winegrowers has long had a vision of being the "Silicon Valley" of Ag Innovation for winegrapes and today that vision becomes a reality. And most exciting is that these start-ups will have our farmers at the table solving the problems they have versus creating solutions and then looking for the problem," said Karissa Kruse, president and CEO of Sonoma County Winegrowers, at the ribbon-cutting event hosted at its headquarters. She added, "Winegrapes are one of the most labor-intensive specialty crops, and emerging technology has the potential to transform how we manage vineyards, upskill our workforce, and continue to deliver for our consumers."
By adding Reservoir Farms, Sonoma to Farm of the Future, a powerful living lab is being created where growers, startups, and industry partners work together to solve today's toughest challenges and build resilience for the future. Amid rising labor costs, a shrinking workforce, and mounting production expenses, wine growers in Sonoma County and across California face complex challenges that threaten vineyard resilience. Reservoir Farms, Sonoma will feature fabrication facilities, an engineering workshop, and 14 acres of managed vineyard test blocks where robotics startups and AgTech leaders like John Deere can work side-by-side to develop, iterate, and validate field-ready technologies. This will bring economic development to Sonoma County, new jobs, new companies, and an opportunity to support workforce development and education.
Reservoir's expansion to Sonoma County is part of a broad, multi-regional strategy to build a network of on-farm innovation hubs anchored by top growers, R&D partners and regional institutions. Reservoir Farms, Sonoma functions as a real-world laboratory accelerating viticulture innovation, uniting multiple stakeholders and bridging the gap between engineering and agriculture.
Reservoir is inviting six startups to join the incubator by the end of 2025. Cropmind, Inc. and Budbreak Innovations already committed to the program beginning in January 2026, while current Reservoir Farms resident Beagle Technology will extend its existing Reservoir membership to Sonoma to expand its vine pruning solution into Wine Country.
"The next generation of breakthroughs in ag robotics happen if world-class engineers have direct access to real farm environments to develop technology," said Danny Bernstein, founder and CEO of Reservoir. "The next leap—whether it's advanced perception, precision agriculture, rugged humanoids, or foundational AI platforms—will require engineers and growers building and problem-solving together. We are honored to be part of Sonoma County Winegrowers' Farm of the Future to help drive innovation for their members today and into the future."
For more information or to apply for the next cohort at Reservoir Farms, Sonoma, visit https://reservoir.co/
ABOUT SONOMA COUNTY WINEGROWERS:
Sonoma County Winegrowers is a marketing and educational organization committed to promoting and protecting Sonoma County as one of the world's premier wine growing regions. With more than 1,800 grape growers across 19 distinct American Viticultural Areas (AVAs), Sonoma County is recognized globally for its commitment to quality, sustainability, and innovation.
ABOUT RESERVOIR:
Reservoir enables deep-tech startups to make a significant impact on the future of specialty crop agriculture. Reservoir Farms is the world's first on-farm robotics incubator, launching in the Salinas Valley and expanding to other key regions, including California's Wine Country. Reservoir VC is an early-stage venture capital fund focused on helping AgTech startups succeed where agriculture happens—in the field. By combining R&D space, hands-on grower input, and early-stage capital, the Reservoir helps turn promising ideas into tools for the growers who feed the world. Learn more at https://reservoir.co.
SOURCE Sonoma County Winegrowers
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