Reservoir has announced plans to open Reservoir Farms – Washington in spring 2027 in the Yakima Valley, a region producing over $3 billion in high-value crops. The expansion brings the company's on-farm technical community model to a state that leads the nation in apples, pears, sweet cherries, and blueberries—crops that are notoriously difficult to mechanize without damaging fruit and face constant disease and pest pressure. The move underscores the growing urgency to develop automation solutions for specialty crops that rely heavily on manual labor.
The Washington site will follow the same partnership model as Reservoir's existing locations, placing startups on working farms alongside researchers and growers to build, test, and refine technology under commercial conditions. Initial work will focus on tree fruit and blueberries, with additional testing in wine grapes and hops, and plans to extend into row crop systems over time. By embedding innovation directly in the field, Reservoir aims to shorten development cycles and ensure that new tools meet the practical needs of growers. The full announcement, including downloadable images and bios, is available click here.
Reservoir operates as a new rural institution, combining an agricultural innovation platform with a venture capital fund to advance rugged physical AI in critical industries. Its Reservoir Farms are described as the world's first on-farm technical communities, starting in the Salinas Valley and expanding across California, Arizona, and Washington. Reservoir VC backs startups solving real problems in agriculture that can compound to other outdoor industries and across the rugged physical AI stack. By providing R&D space, hands-on grower input, and early-stage capital, Reservoir helps turn promising ideas into tools for the growers who feed the world. More information is available at https://reservoir.co.
The expansion into Washington is significant because it targets crops that are central to the state's agricultural economy and notoriously challenging to automate. Tree fruit and blueberries require delicate handling, and labor shortages have increasingly threatened growers' ability to harvest on time. By focusing on these high-value crops, Reservoir aims to accelerate the development of physical AI that can operate reliably in rugged outdoor environments. The initiative also signals a broader push to bring venture-backed innovation to rural regions, potentially creating new economic opportunities and strengthening the resilience of the agricultural sector.
