The Digit robot at AGCO’s Hesston plant and what it will do in 2027

Sorting parts, stacking them and placing containers in storage are the first tasks AGCO plans to give Digit, a bipedal robot. The pilot is scheduled to begin in 2027 at AGCO’s plant in Hesston, Kansas, USA. Farmers know the site for its Hesston by Massey Ferguson equipment. The plant produces balers, self-propelled windrowers and combine harvesters.

Digit was developed by the US company Agility Robotics, which signed a commercial agreement with AGCO to trial the robot at the plant. In its announcement on October 20, 2026, AGCO outlined the first tasks, which involve supporting assembly and moving materials within the facility. The company aims to reduce the amount of repetitive manual handling its employees do.

How Digit 4 and Digit 5 differ

Agility Robotics’ current materials describe two generations, Digit 4 and Digit 5. Digit 4 is already operating at customer sites. Agility unveiled Digit 5 on September 15, 2026, and plans to begin deliveries to early-access customers in the first half of 2027, with general availability targeted for the end of the year. AGCO and Agility Robotics have yet to specify which generation they will trial in Hesston.

The Digit 4 figures come from Agility Robotics’ comparison of the two generations. The Digit 5 figures are specifications published by the developer.

Digit 5 stands 1.81 m tall and weighs 129 kg. With its arms raised, it can reach shelves about 2.2 m above the floor. Agility Robotics says the new battery system provides 90 minutes of operation and takes 9 minutes to recharge. The safety system uses sensors to detect people and a separate controller to manage the robot’s movement. When someone comes close, the robot is designed to change course or stop, depending on the situation.

How Digit fits into factory logistics

At Hesston, Digit will handle parts and containers in an area that supports assembly. The robot already performs similar work for logistics operator GXO. At the company’s facility in Flowery Branch, Georgia, Digit carries totes and places them on a conveyor. GXO uses Agility Arc, a cloud platform, to manage the robots and integrate them into its operations. The AGCO announcement also identifies Agility Arc as the platform for managing a fleet of Digit robots.

What matters to the plant is how the robot performs across the full handling cycle. It has to pick up a container, carry it and set it down in the designated spot at a pace that keeps nearby stations supplied. Cycle time, the number of times an operator needs to step in and consistency over a full shift would help assess how well Digit fits the job. AGCO has identified the site and the initial tasks. The trial will show how Digit performs on the factory floor.

Bas-Agro supplies agricultural machinery spare parts throughout Ukraine. You can find parts by catalogue number or order custom manufacturing from a sample or technical drawing. Browse the Bas.ua spare parts catalogue