SOFTWARE

The landscape industry is still in the early-adopter phase when it comes to autonomous solutions, but it is clearly moving toward broader market acceptance, Quinn stated.

“ Autonomy is no longer theoretical to most people,” said Quinn.“ Consumers now see autonomous systems in everyday life, whether it ' s Waymos in cities, self-driving features in Teslas or robot food delivery systems. That familiarity is helping reduce skepticism and making commercial autonomy easier to understand. In landscaping specifically, the growth driver is practical, not noveltybased: Contractors are looking for ways to do more with the crews they have in a market where labor remains constrained.”

According to Quinn, dealers should understand that autonomy is fast becoming a legitimate commercial equipment category, and there will be a significant advantage for those who learn how to position it clearly and confidently.

“ The sales conversation is not about replacing crews,” he said.“ But rather about improving output, consistency, and labor efficiency by reducing labor needs and helping contractors continue to serve and grow their business without relying on additional hard-to-find staff. This is more than a technology conversation; it is a productivity conversation.”

On the service side, the OEMs and dealers continue to support the machines and own customer relationships. The software provider offers training, support and resources to help manufacturers and dealers sell, demo and support the autonomous machines.

AUTONOMOUS SOLUTIONS INC.( ASI) ACQUIRED Scythe Robotics, a Colorado-based developer of autonomous solutions for the landscape industry.

The acquisition brings Scythe’ s onboard intelligence and proprietary computer vision system, Scythe Sight, into ASI’ s existing portfolio, which includes the Mobius autonomous fleet management system. The companies said the integration is expected to support further development of autonomous equipment across industries such as construction, agriculture and landscaping, while supporting continued deployment of Scythe’ s M. 52 autonomous mower.

“ With complementary values and missions, both Scythe and ASI build autonomy that shows up every day, in the real world, and delivers labor leverage for customers who can’ t afford downtime,” said Jack Morrison, Scythe’ s co-founder and CEO.“ This newly established partnership will multiply our state-of-the-art autonomy’ s impact across the industries ASI serves. Further, customers mowing with Scythe M. 52 today will benefit from ASI’ s scale, operational maturity and decades of success in offroad robotics.”

Said ASI CEO Mel Torrie,“ ASI has over 25 years of deploying autonomy where reliability and safety aren’ t just features but requirements. Scythe’ s AI technology will play a critical role in helping us develop the next generation of autonomous equipment across diverse industrial sectors. Scythe’ s experience fielding nationwide deployments and its best-in-class account management program will help ASI’ s growth and great customer service in our other verticals.”

Scythe will continue to operate as an equipment brand within ASI Landscaping.

www. OPE-Plus. com April 2026 OPE + 25