Kray Technologies
Kray Technologies builds the Kray Protection UAS, an autonomous electrostatic-spraying agricultural drone designed to replace ag planes for mid-size farmers worldwide, pairing a proprietary compound VTOL airframe with computer-vision-based navigation and EPA-compliant ultra-low-volume application.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2015
- HeadquartersNovato, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Kray Technologies does
Kray Technologies is a Ukrainian-founded agricultural drone company that builds autonomous crop-spraying UAS (Unmanned Aerial Systems) intended to replace traditional ground sprayers and agricultural aircraft. Founded in 2015 by co-founders Dmytro Surdu (CEO/CTO) and Maxim Surdu (CBDO), the company designs the Kray Protection UAS — a compound multirotor VTOL platform that the company describes as the world's first digital and fully unmanned drone crop sprayer. The system integrates a proprietary compound multirotor airframe, a custom high-dynamic VTOL flight controller, a hybrid computer-vision GNC subsystem, and a monodisperse electrostatic spraying module that charges droplets at 10 kV to reduce drift. Company-stated performance metrics include processing up to 1,200 acres per day in fully autonomous mode, a maximum speed of 30 m/s, and 4-inch position-control precision across the full speed envelope.
The company targets mid-size farmers worldwide and, secondarily, agricultural service providers, with a value proposition centered on reducing crop-protection application costs to roughly one-tenth of conventional aerial or ground spraying while meeting EPA-level application safety requirements. Revenue is generated through direct enterprise sales of Kray Protection UAS hardware and a separately offered Mission Control System (High Dynamic VTOL Flight Controller + Close Terrain Vision Control). Pricing is not publicly disclosed and is gated behind NDA execution; the go-to-market motion begins with one- or two-drone pilot partnership projects for testing before scaling to fleet deployments. The company employs 11–50 people.
Kray Technologies has raised approximately US$1.29 million across eight disclosed rounds from 2016 through 2022, with investors including FasterCapital, Chernovetskyi Investment Group, VentureBot, the Ukrainian Startup Fund, gener8tor, and Right Side Capital Management. The company has accumulated competition credentials including TiE50 (2017), UVCA/WNISEF (2018), CRDF Global (2017), EIT Food Accelerator Network finalist (2019), and Startup World Cup Ukraine winner (2020). The advisory board includes agriculture-focused VC operators (e.g., ex-CEO of AVAC Ltd., Managing Partner of Verdex Capital). No commercial revenue or ARR is publicly disclosed, and the company remains in a pre-commercial or pilot-stage revenue phase based on the available evidence.
Kray Technologies firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Kray Technologies
- Legal name
- Kray Technologies
- Website
- https://kray.technology
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2015
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Kray Technologies builds the Kray Protection UAS, an autonomous electrostatic-spraying agricultural drone designed to replace ag planes for mid-size farmers worldwide, pairing a proprietary compound VTOL airframe with computer-vision-based navigation and EPA-compliant ultra-low-volume application.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Kray Technologies industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Agricultural Drones
- SIC
- Farm Machinery & Equipment (3523), Search, Detection, Navagation, Guidance, Aeronautical Sys (3812)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Aerial Application Drones & UAS Spray Systems (AFAAADAB)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Drone/UAS Application Services (Spraying, Spreading, Seeding) (AFACAIAB), Small Unmanned Aerial Systems (sUAS) & Multirotor Drones (IMABAIAA), VTOL & Hybrid UAV Platforms (IMABAIAC), UAS Ground Control Stations (GCS) & Remote Operations Infrastructure (IMABAIAL), Sprayer Calibration, Testing & Drift-Reduction Technology (Sensors, Shields, Adjuvant Dosing) (AFAAADAI), Aerial Pesticide/Herbicide/Fungicide Application (AFACAIAE), Aerial Fertilizer & Micronutrient Application (AFACAIAD), Aerial Seeding & Cover Crop Broadcasting (AFACAIAC)
Keywords
Where Kray Technologies is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Novato
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Kray Technologies business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations
Revenue model
- Agricultural Drone Sales: Sale of Kray Protection UAS drones for crop protection and plant nutrition applications. The company offers both direct drone purchases and partnership projects for pilot testing.
- Mission Control System: Sale of proprietary mission control subsystem for high dynamic VTOL drones, offered as a separate product line.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Multi-year contract | Quote-based enterprise pricing |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels4 records
Kray Technologies product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Kray Technologies designs and manufactures the Kray Protection UAS, the world's first fully unmanned digital drone crop sprayer built on a compound multirotor VTOL airframe. The system integrates electrostatic droplet charging, computer-vision-based terrain reconstruction, and a proprietary Mission Control System to deliver autonomous on-demand fertilizers and pesticides at one-tenth the cost of traditional aerial or ground application. The Mission Control System is also offered as a separate product line for high-dynamic VTOL drones.
Product overview
Kray Technologies offers a unified product ecosystem centered on the Kray Protection UAS — the world's first digital and fully unmanned agricultural drone crop sprayer. This core product is designed to replace agricultural planes by delivering on-demand fertilizers and pesticides to farmers' fields. The system includes an integrated Mission Control System comprising a High Dynamic VTOL Flight Controller and Close Terrain Vision Control module, which work together to enable fully autonomous operation with centimeter-level positioning accuracy and obstacle avoidance. The product portfolio focuses on industrial-level crop spraying productivity through electrostatic droplet charging technology, achieving tenfold cost reduction compared to traditional aerial or ground application methods.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Kray Protection UAS: World's most efficient industrial crop-spraying drone capable of processing up to 1200 acres per day autonomously.
- Mission Control System
Products and services
- Kray Protection UAS World's first digital and fully unmanned industrial crop-spraying drone capable of processing up to 1,200 acres per day autonomously, meeting EPA application safety requirements. Features electrostatic droplet charging at 10 kV while flying at 3 feet above crop at velocities up to 30 m/s, intended for mid-size farmers and agricultural service providers worldwide.
- Mission Control System Proprietary mission control subsystem for high dynamic VTOL drones, including the High Dynamic VTOL Flight Controller and Close Terrain Vision Control module, enabling autonomous navigation and terrain-aware flight operations with centimeter-level positioning accuracy and obstacle avoidance.
Quantifiable outcome
- Up to 1200 acres coverage per day in fully automated mode
- +5 more outcomes
Companies that use Kray Technologies
Customer profileSegments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Kray Technologies technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
AI capability4 records
Feature5 records
Kray Technologies partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Eight partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.
- Startup Grind Global 2020minorKray Technologies represented Ukraine as part of a 15-startup Ukrainian delegation to participate in Startup Grind Global 2020 conference in California.
- Growth Train AcceleratorminorAfter MassChallenge EIT FAN accelerator in Lisbon, participated in Growth Train Demo Day in Copenhagen along with other agritech startups.
- EIT Food Accelerator NetworkcoreKray Technologies participated in the EIT Food Accelerator Network (EIT FAN) programme in Haifa, Israel. The program was a result of cooperation between European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) Food and MassChallenge Switzerland. Kray was selected as one of twelve finalists and competed at the EIT Food Venture Summit in Lisbon.
- MassChallenge SwitzerlandcoreCollaborated with MassChallenge Switzerland as part of the EIT FAN program. Participated in MassChallenge Sustainability Day in Lausanne, Switzerland.
- AUVSI XponentialminorPre-series version of Kray Protection UAS was presented at AUVSI Xponential 2018 in Denver, the largest unmanned industry exhibition.
- CES 2018minorParticipated in CES 2018 in Las Vegas as winner of UVCA/WNISEF competition.
- TechCrunch Disrupt San FranciscominorNew model of Kray Protection UAS introduced during TechCrunch Disrupt San Francisco, made possible due to CRDF Global competition win.
- Drone World Expo 2016minorEarly prototype of Kray Protection was first presented at Drone World Expo 2016 in San Jose, California.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Kray Technologies competitors and assessment
Company assessmentEmerging players
- Sentera: Sentera builds drone-based sensors, analytics, and field intelligence for agriculture, with growing activity in precision spray integration. Overlaps with Kray on precision-agriculture workflows and ag sensor stack, though Sentera is more software/sensor than airframe-focused.
- DroneDeploy: DroneDeploy provides drone software for mapping, crop scouting, and precision-ag analytics, and increasingly integrates with spray-drone OEMs. Comparable in targeting ag-service providers with drone-enabled workflows, but acts more as enablement software than a hardware competitor.
Broad incumbents
- John Deere (See & Spray): John Deere’s See & Spray and Blue River technology brings AI-driven precision spraying to large agricultural equipment, competing conceptually with Kray on reducing chemical use and input costs. Differs in delivery mechanism (ground-based high-clearance sprayers vs. UAVs) but targets the same farmer ROI value proposition.
- Yamaha Motor (FAZER/RMAX): Yamaha’s RMAX/FAZER unmanned helicopters are the legacy industrial-scale agricultural spraying platform in Japan, Korea, Australia, and the U.S. Kray is explicitly positioning the Kray Protection UAS as a digital, autonomous replacement for ag planes and Yamaha-style rotorcraft, making it the most direct legacy competitor.
- AeroVironment (Quantix / AV ACUAS): AeroVironment produces small UAS for defense, commercial, and agricultural use, including the Quantix hybrid VTOL mapping/spraying platform. Comparable VTOL architecture and ag-deployment ambitions, with much broader defense-and-commercial scope.
Direct peers
- PrecisionHawk: PrecisionHawk commercializes drone-based aerial data and spraying services for agriculture, with a focus on analytics, regulatory compliance, and turnkey enterprise programs. Comparable in combining UAV hardware with agricultural spray/workflow services targeting commercial farming operations.
- XAG: XAG builds agricultural drones and ground robots for spraying, seeding, and crop analytics, with broad Asia-Pacific and emerging-market deployments. Comparable business model to Kray (drone-based crop protection) and similar target farmer/agri-service-provider segments.
- DJI (Agras series): DJI’s Agras line (MG-1, T-series) is the dominant agricultural spraying drone platform globally. Both companies sell VTOL/multirotor crop-spraying drones with precision application, targeting ag-service providers and large farmers. Kray’s electrostatic drift reduction and 30 m/s VTOL performance are positioned as differentiation against DJI’s incumbency.
- AgEagle Aerial Systems: AgEagle (which acquired senseFly and Parrot’s commercial drone business) designs and sells fixed-wing and multirotor drones used in agriculture, mapping, and surveying. Sells into an overlapping ag customer base and competes with Kray for spray-and-survey contract work.
Others
- Hummingbird Aerial Sensing: Specialist agricultural UAV services and sensor provider focused on crop scouting and precision-ag analytics. Adjacent ecosystem participant rather than direct drone competitor, but shares an end-customer base of ag-service providers and precision-farming operators.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks7 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Kray Technologies social profiles
Digital presenceKray Technologies financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Kray Technologies leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles6 records
Kray Technologies funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds8 records
Investors6 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Kray Technologies M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Kray Technologies
What does Kray Technologies do?
Kray Technologies designs and manufactures the Kray Protection UAS, the world's first fully unmanned digital drone crop sprayer built on a compound multirotor VTOL airframe. The system integrates electrostatic droplet charging, computer-vision-based terrain reconstruction, and a proprietary Mission Control System to deliver autonomous on-demand fertilizers and pesticides at one-tenth the cost of traditional aerial or ground application. The Mission Control System is also offered as a separate product line for high-dynamic VTOL drones.
Is Kray Technologies a public or private company?
Kray Technologies is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Kray Technologies founded?
Kray Technologies was founded in 2015. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Kray Technologies based?
Kray Technologies is headquartered in Novato, United States, in the North America region.
How does Kray Technologies make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Agricultural Drone Sales are the primary driver. The others are mission Control System.
Who are Kray Technologies's main competitors?
Emerging players on record are Sentera and DroneDeploy. Broad incumbents are John Deere (See & Spray), Yamaha Motor (FAZER/RMAX) and AeroVironment (Quantix / AV ACUAS). Direct peers are PrecisionHawk, XAG, DJI (Agras series) and AgEagle Aerial Systems. Hummingbird Aerial Sensing is listed as an others.
Does Kray Technologies have an API?
No public API is recorded for Kray Technologies.
What industry is Kray Technologies in?
Kray Technologies's product category is Agricultural Drones. Its primary akta.pro industry code is AFAAADAB, Aerial Application Drones & UAS Spray Systems, with a secondary code of AFACAIAB, Drone/UAS Application Services (Spraying, Spreading, Seeding). Its SIC code is 3523.