New all-terrain Thor ground robot can clear minefields in war zones

Spanish startup Voltrac has raised over USD 8.1 million in a seed funding round led by climate-focused VC Extantia to scale production of its all-terrain electric unmanned ground vehicle (UGV), Thor. Designed to address labor shortages in agriculture and front-line logistics, Thor can autonomously or remotely operate across farms and conflict zones. It features 70% fewer components than traditional models, a battery capacity three times larger than competitors, and a fully swappable power system. Thor can integrate with existing farm implements and perform tasks such as plowing, seeding, and crop treatment, while also switching to non-lethal defense roles including logistics, surveillance, and demining. Thor’s ability to haul four tonnes over rugged terrain makes it valuable for high-risk environments like Ukraine’s front lines, where it has attracted interest for on-site trials. Voltrac emphasizes non-lethal defense applications to reduce personnel risk and plans to enhance Thor’s autonomous capabilities using reinforcement learning to optimize crop treatments