"Monarch Tractor warned staff Thursday it may need to lay off more than 100 employees, or possibly even 'shut down,' according to a company-wide memo obtained by TechCrunch. The memo comes after Monarch Tractor was already cutting some positions over the last few weeks at its California corporate facilities and remote teams in India and Singapore, according to multiple former employees who spoke with TechCrunch on the condition of anonymity."
"Monarch Tractor was founded in 2018 by a team that included a former top executive at Tesla's first gigafactory and Carlo Mondavi, a scion of the famous winemaking family. The company raised at least $220 million, including $133 million in 2024, as it pursued a goal of making "driver optional" autonomous tractors that could perform tasks at places like wineries and other fruit farms."
"At least one customer - one of Monarch Tractors' first dealers - claims the autonomous tech never worked well, if at all, according to a lawsuit first reported by TechCrunch this week. Idaho dealership Burks Tractor claimed Monarch sold it "defective" vehicles that experienced "significant problems" after they arrived in 2024. Primarily, Burks accused Monarch's tractors of being "unable to operate autonomously." (Monarch denied the claims in a court filing.)"
Monarch Tractor warned staff it may lay off more than 100 employees or possibly shut down. The company already cut positions at California corporate facilities and remote teams in India and Singapore. Monarch Tractor was founded in 2018 by a team including a former top Tesla gigafactory executive and Carlo Mondavi. The company raised at least $220 million, including $133 million in 2024, pursuing "driver optional" autonomous tractors and claiming roughly 500 shipped units. A late-2024 restructuring shifted focus to new use cases, software services, and licensing. A dealer sued alleging defective autonomous systems; Monarch denied the claims. The company lost its contract manufacturer, Foxco
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