As poultry production continues to grow across the United States, one Nebraska startup believes robotics can help solve one of the industry’s biggest challenges: a shrinking labor force.
On the latest episode of the Building Nebraska podcast, Bird’s Eye Robotics President Dusty Reynolds shared how the company is developing autonomous technology designed specifically for poultry barns, helping producers improve efficiency while giving growers better insight into flock health.
“The live production side is a couple of decades behind,” Reynolds said. “We’re lacking animal husbandry skills, we’re lacking access to labor, and we’re still stuck a couple of decades behind everything else.”
Bird’s Eye Robotics began with a simple idea in 2018 after Reynolds learned that one of the least desirable jobs inside poultry barns was collecting dead birds. Using an old electric wheelchair purchased online, Reynolds and his team built an early prototype capable of performing that task remotely.
As testing continued, they discovered the robot’s greatest value wasn’t what it picked up—it was how the birds responded.
As the robot slowly moves through the barn, birds stand up, drink water and begin eating before settling back down. That additional movement has led to improvements in feed conversion and bird growth, creating value for both growers and poultry integrators.
“We’ve seen some really interesting results,” Reynolds said. “They grow faster. They convert grain to protein faster. It’s efficiency at the end of the day.”
Today, the company is expanding beyond robotics into precision livestock data collection. Future versions of the platform are expected to monitor litter conditions, bird health and environmental factors throughout the barn, giving producers more detailed information to improve flock management.
While Bird’s Eye Robotics serves an industry with a large footprint in the Southeast, Reynolds said Nebraska has become the ideal place to build the company.
Historically known more for beef and row crops than poultry, Nebraska has seen rapid expansion in poultry production in recent years, including Lincoln Premium Poultry’s Fremont complex and continued investment by Smart Chicken.
“When you look at how poultry is expanding and the need for poultry to continue to expand, you need to be as close to the grain and the feed as you can,” Reynolds said. “I would argue that work ethic up here is second to none. Nebraska is full of extraordinary folks that just get things done. There’s no better place to build a company.”
Despite developing advanced automation, Reynolds emphasized that the company’s goal isn’t to replace people.
“I still believe that birds need to be raised by humans,” he said. “Technology is there to help growers manage more effectively, not replace what’s between our ears.”
Reynolds joined Building Nebraska to discuss the company’s startup journey, the future of agricultural robotics and why he believes Nebraska is becoming a leader in poultry innovation.
The full conversation is available on the Building Nebraska podcast on YouTube, Spotify and other major podcast platforms.