Grain Weevil

Omaha, United States

Founded 2019

About Grain Weevil

Grain Weevil Corporation is an Omaha, Nebraska-based ag-tech startup developing grain bin safety and management robots to protect farmers from the dangers of grain bin entry. Founded in 2019 by University of Nebraska at Omaha students, the company has received .1 million in funding from the National Science Foundation. The idea originated from a conversation between Ben Johnson and an Aurora farmer about building a robot to eliminate the need to enter dangerous grain bins. The founding team includes CEO Chad Johnson (Ben's father), Chief Innovation Officer Ben Johnson (electrical engineering graduate), and Lead Software Engineer Zane Zents (computer science and mathematics graduate). The Grain Weevil is a 30-pound remote-controlled robot that uses augers and gravity to level grain, break crusts, conduct inspections, and feed grain into extraction augers. Key features include portability, waterproof and dustproof construction, and the ability to dig itself out of up to 5 feet of grain if accidentally buried. The Standard Robot Package is priced at ,500 (with ,500 deposit for pre-orders) and includes the robot, controller, bin camera system, standard charger, and lift system. The safety context is critical: it takes less than five seconds to become helplessly trapped in flowing grain and less than 30 seconds to become fully engulfed. Iowa, Indiana, Minnesota, Illinois, and Nebraska have historically had the most grain entrapment cases. Retail partners include Aero Crop Solution, Midwest Grain Tech, Scott Ag Solutions, and BioSphere Autonomy.