# MK-V Manufacturer: [Monarch Tractor](/companies/monarch-tractor) Category: agriculture ## Media - **Video (primary-source)**: [Monarch Tractor MK-V launch](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2WnAgUseIVM). Monarch Tractor's launch of the MK-V electric tractor. Monarch frames the MK-V as 'driver-optional', keeping the farmer in control whether seated or operating autonomously; operator-supervised autonomy. _(via Monarch Tractor)_ _Each clip and image on this page carries a provenance label. [About our media provenance](/consumer#media-provenance)._ ## Summary Monarch Tractor (founded 2018, Livermore, California; CEO Praveen Penmetsa) built the MK-V, a fully battery-electric, driver-optional smart tractor with a WingspanAI fleet-management and remote-supervision layer. There is no consumer price, and the company is discontinued. The MK-V did reach a genuine historical peak: it shipped to paying commercial customers starting December 2022 (the first being Constellation Brands, which took six tractors for its To Kalon vineyard), and Monarch raised more than $220 million anchored by a $133M Series C in July 2024 (recorded at commercial maturity historically). But Monarch collapsed through 2025: its Foxconn manufacturing arrangement ended (the Ohio plant was sold to SoftBank in August 2025), with layoffs and a shutdown warning in November 2025, a pivot to roughly 70% licensing revenue, and finally an assignment for the benefit of creditors; its assets and IP (the software-defined vehicle platform and perception stack) were acquired by Caterpillar around April 14, 2026, in an asset-and-technology purchase, not a going-concern acquisition. On autonomy, marketing of a fully autonomous tractor overstated reality: full autonomy was confined to a narrow dairy feed-pushing use case, while general field work was driver-assist with an operator aboard, and an Idaho dealer sued in September 2025 alleging the tractors could not operate autonomously. It is the wound-down anchor of the agriculture cohort. ## Top line > MK-V is discontinued, no capability claims are on file, the model has no verified field deployments in the registry, and no incidents are on record. ## Readiness - **Availability** (discontinued): Discontinued. - **Price honesty** (no-price): No price points on file for MK-V. - **Capability honesty** (no-claims): No reviewed capability claims on file for MK-V. - **Real-world use** (commercial): Maturity: commercial. No verified deployments in the registry. - **Safety record** (no-incidents): No incidents on record. No verified deployments either. ## What it claims to do _No reviewed capability claims on file._ ## Price _No reviewed price points on file._ ## Real-world use _No verified deployments on file for MK-V._ ## Safety record _No incidents on record. No verified deployments either, so the absence is uninformative._ ## Privacy _No privacy practices disclosed or on file for MK-V._ ## Specs - **notes**: [{"label":"Verified (historical peak)","value":"Monarch (founded 2018, Livermore CA; founder/CEO Praveen Penmetsa) genuinely shipped the MK-V battery-electric tractor to paying commercial customers starting Dec 2022 (first: Constellation Brands, six tractors at the To Kalon vineyard; earlier Wente pilot 2021). Raised ~$220M+ (some reports up to ~$251M), anchored by a $133M Series C (Jul 2024). Hence maturityStage=commercial (historical peak)."},{"label":"CORRECTION (cross-graph M&A; defunct)","value":"Contrary to the dispatch's framing of an active growing OEM, Monarch COLLAPSED: Foxconn manufacturing ended (Ohio plant sold to SoftBank, Aug 2025); layoffs + shutdown warning (Nov 2025); pivoted to ~70% licensing revenue; entered an assignment for the benefit of creditors and auctioned remaining tractors; its assets/IP (software-defined vehicle platform, perception stack, electrification) were acquired by CATERPILLAR (~Apr 14 2026, terms undisclosed, asset/tech purchase not going-concern). lifecycleState=discontinued."},{"label":"Verified-vs-claimed (autonomy)","value":"Marketing of a 'fully autonomous' tractor overstates reality: full autonomy was narrow (dairy feed-pushing in outdoor feed lanes); general field work was driver-assist (Row Follow) with an operator aboard plus WingspanAI remote supervision. An Idaho dealer (Burks Tractor) sued Sept 2025 alleging the MK-Vs 'were unable to operate autonomously,' with Monarch's sales team reportedly conceding the limits in writing."}] - **products**: MK-V: fully battery-electric, driver-optional smart tractor with WingspanAI fleet/remote layer; first shipped to commercial customers Dec 2022 - **formFactor**: agriculture (battery-electric driver-optional smart tractor) ## What's under the hood _No brain on file for MK-V._ ## Frequently asked questions ### Is the MK-V actually available for purchase? Discontinued. No longer available for purchase. _Source: [Monarch Tractor's collapse ends with an acquisition by Caterpillar (assets/IP, Apr 2026)](https://techcrunch.com/2026/04/15/monarch-tractors-collapse-ends-in-with-an-acquisition-by-caterpillar/)._ ### What does the MK-V cost? Not announced. ### Where is the MK-V being used? No verified field deployments on record. ### Is the MK-V safe? No incidents on record, but with no verified field deployments either, the absence is uninformative. ### How does the MK-V handle privacy? No privacy practices disclosed or on file for MK-V. ### Who makes the MK-V? MK-V is made by Monarch Tractor, based in Livermore, California, USA. _Source: [Monarch Tractor's collapse ends with an acquisition by Caterpillar (assets/IP, Apr 2026)](https://techcrunch.com/2026/04/15/monarch-tractors-collapse-ends-in-with-an-acquisition-by-caterpillar/)._ ## Manufacturer - [Monarch Tractor (https://techcrunch.com/2026/04/15/monarch-tractors-collapse-ends-in-with-an-acquisition-by-caterpillar/)](https://techcrunch.com/2026/04/15/monarch-tractors-collapse-ends-in-with-an-acquisition-by-caterpillar/) ## Compared to - [FD20](/consumer/models/farmdroid-fd20) ## Sources 1. [Monarch Tractor's collapse ends with an acquisition by Caterpillar (assets/IP, Apr 2026)](https://techcrunch.com/2026/04/15/monarch-tractors-collapse-ends-in-with-an-acquisition-by-caterpillar/) 2. [Monarch preps layoffs, warns it may 'shut down' (Nov 2025; pivot to licensing)](https://techcrunch.com/2025/11/19/monarch-tractor-preps-for-layoffs-and-warns-employees-it-may-shut-down/) 3. [Monarch tractors won't be built by Foxconn after Ohio factory sale (Aug 2025)](https://techcrunch.com/2025/08/13/monarch-tractors-wont-be-built-by-foxconn-after-ohio-factory-sale/) 4. [Constellation Brands takes delivery of first Monarch MK-V tractors (Dec 2022; To Kalon vineyard)](https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221201005455/en/) 5. [Monarch $133M Series C (Jul 2024; Astanor / HH-CTBC)](https://agfundernews.com/brief-monarch-tractor-bags-record-133m-eyes-global-expansion-for-its-all-electric-autonomous-machines) 6. [Dealer lawsuit alleges MK-V 'unable to operate autonomously' (Sept 2025)](https://techbuzz.ai/articles/monarch-tractor-faces-lawsuit-over-non-autonomous-tractors) 7. [Monarch Tractor official YouTube (@Monarchtractor), embedded under standard YouTube embed terms. oEmbed author_url verified 2026-06-04.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2WnAgUseIVM) ยท 2026-06-04 _Canonical: https://deploy.report/models/monarch-mk-v_