The agriculture spotlight is growing, and more people are taking a strong interest in the farm of the future. While what that means continues to take shape, there are myriad people lending their talents and knowhow to the industry, trying to make improvements for everyone.
Aigen founders Richard Wurden and Kenny Lee are two such people. Wurden’s background is in cleantech and hardware, and Lee’s is in data and cyber security. They’ll be the first to tell you that they are both focused on the future of the planet, and when they look at the juxtaposition of the planetary health problem and the human health problem, the industry that intersects both of those challenges and can really have a positive influence is agriculture.
“Ag can lag, and we saw a need there,” said Lee.
The team sought to combine the latest in artificial intelligence (AI) technology and machine learning with robotics that can reduce chemical and fossil fuel usage.
“If you look at some of the other advances that are out there using ‘robotics and latest tech,’ it may move the needle in one of the areas (like for reducing chemicals). But it may be very carbon intensive in terms of actually running the tractors or requiring diesel fuels to run those robotic systems,” Lee said.
The Aigen robot – Element – is autonomous and powered by solar panels that double as sails to catch additional free wind energy. All four wheels use regenerative motors, meaning energy is also additionally captured on the downhills.
Weed management is typically what draws farmers to get Element into the field. Chemical tools are becoming more limited, not only in part due to regulation, but also in terms of chemical resistance.
“We’re landing on the farm with the weed control feature,” Lee said. “But once we’re on the farm, then the question becomes, ‘What other potential benefits can we unlock for the grower?’”
Can the robot detect pests and disease and alert growers and agronomists in real time? Lee offers an emphatic yes.
With machine learning and AI, temperature, moisture, weather patterns, and other information can be correlated and used for predictive analysis around soil and crop health and yields. With an intelligent robotic platform roaming the field, the options are many.
“The question really is: What do you want it to do, and what is the most value you can get out of it?” said Lee.
Herbicide resistant weeds are posing multi-angled financial pressures for farmers, and with limited remaining options, farmers are looking at what could be coming down the pike in terms of potentially alleviating the problem.
The machines go into the field right after seeding and stay in the field until the end of the season. The robots are designed to operate as a fleet in-field. They are significantly smaller than a tractor and sleep and wake up on the farm so that they can take care of their respective sections and never have to leave the field.
“We see this as a robotic platform that has constant eyes, or sensors, roaming across the farm. But once you get beyond that, the simple question I ask is, ‘If these robots had eyes, and a brain that could think, and arms, what else would you like it to do?” Lee said. “And I think that is the much bigger potential of the platform.”
This isn’t to be confused with “robots” that are simply tractor implements that are designed to be pulled behind machinery and left to do their jobs, such as weeding.
“We’re really envisioning an ecosystem around and outside of the tractor ecosystem, and unlocking potential that way,” said Lee.
For the first few years of on-farm use, Aigen is offering the robots as a service in order to control the end-to-end experience of the weeding solution. Rates are dependent on crop and weed density and are charged on a per-acre basis for the whole season — not per pass through the field. The robots are dropped off at the start of the season and picked up at the end. The ultimate plan, however, is to offer the robots for outright purchase for farmers.
Aigen has a growing presence on Idaho’s sugar beet farms and recognizes the need and opportunity on potato farms. With abundant farmer support in sugar beets, Aigen is opening up opportunities to potato producers interested in partnering and testing the robots on their farms.
Aigen will build 500 robots over the next two years.
Main image: the Aigen Element.
Photos: Aigen
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