Designing practical autonomy
At Sabanto, building practical autonomy requires more than advanced robotics. It takes people who can bridge technology, strategy, and the real-world needs of farmers. Chris Mikelson brings a unique combination of design expertise, product leadership, and ag-tech experience to his role as Lead Product Manager.
Chris is helping move agriculture toward fully autonomous operations by bridging advanced technology with real-world usability.
A native of Des Moines, Iowa, Chris graduated from Iowa State University with a degree in Industrial Design. His journey into ag-tech began during his college years, when he met Sabanto founder Craig Rupp. That early connection helped set the stage for his career.
Chris initially focused on refining the user experience at the intersection of hardware and software. Over time, his role naturally evolved into product management. This progression allowed him to utilize his foundation in design when taking on broader responsibility for shaping the company’s overall product vision.
Today, Chris leads Sabanto’s product team, coordinating with stakeholders across the company to provide a high-level roadmap that spans robotics, hardware, embedded systems, and cloud software. Despite this broad strategic scope, he remains closely connected to how the technology performs in the field.
He plays a key role in cross-functional alignment, working closely with technical leads to ensure everything Sabanto builds meets three essential criteria: viability, value and usability. It must be good for the business, valuable to customers, and usable in real farming conditions. In addition, Chris is the sole designer of vMC, applying a human-centered approach to make complex autonomy tools intuitive and approachable.
Chris is especially proud of features developed directly from customer feedback, including autonomous field-to-field transit. Data shows that customers using this capability are 40 percent more efficient and operate four times more autonomous hours than those who do not.
Looking ahead, Chris is excited about Sabanto’s shift from automated machines to truly autonomous operations. He envisions a future where farmers move from managing a single machine in the field to coordinating fleets of brand-agnostic equipment and stepping into the role of mission commanders.
“Seeing our technology change the trajectory of their business by freeing them from the cab to focus on higher-level strategy is exactly why I do this work,” Chris says.
As a designer at heart, Chris is especially motivated by the challenge of making advanced robotics feel natural and intuitive. His goal is to reduce mental load and give farmers the freedom to focus on higher-level decisions.
“In ag-tech, it’s easy to fall in love with robotics,” Chris says. “But I am constantly reminded that there is a human being at the other end of that interface. The exciting challenge ahead is closing the gap between sophisticated robotics and intuitive, natural user experiences, making our technology as seamless as the tools farmers have relied on for generations.”
Closing that gap continues to drive Chris’s work and Sabanto’s path forward.
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