Precision AI has been selected as the winner of the Cooperative Ventures Innovation Challenge at this year’s World Agri-Tech Innovation Summit in San Francisco, in a close-run final against fellow finalists Autonomous Pivot and Ukko Agro, after being selected from over 100 entrants around the world.
With its custom-built AI-powered drones, the Canada-based start-up offers plant-level herbicide applications at broadacre scale, ultimately taking crop production decisions from a whole field to an individual plant. Its autonomous drones enable field spraying to be targeted from the air at only the weeds, which results in massive chemical savings while removing the reliance on remote internet connectivity.
“We are absolutely thrilled to have won the Innovation Challenge,” said Dan McCann, CEO of Precision AI. “I am very excited to work with CHS and GROWMARK, I think the strategic fit is fantastic and we can do some wonderful things together.”
Commenting on the winning choice, GROWMARK’s Director of Innovation Heather Thompson said: “We were really impressed with the amount of data Precision AI are able to capture, but also how quickly they can process that data in order to help farmers make decisions about crop protection application, fertilizers and fungicides. We felt their technology is useful in both conventional and aerial spraying application. It’s a very tangible use of the data by the grower. This is only the beginning of the relationship!”
As the Innovation Challenge winner, Precision AI will get support from Cooperative Ventures including CHS and GROWMARK’s technical expertise and customer insights as well as support with accessing acres for pilots or in-field trials.
Abigail Ryder, Program Director for the World Agri-Tech Innovation Summit series said: “It’s rewarding to see the wealth of groundbreaking technologies and fresh start-ups emerging across the global agri-tech landscape. We look forward to hearing all about the journey Precision AI is embarking on with Cooperative Ventures, CHS and GROWMARK, and what comes out of their collaboration.”
For more information on the Innovation Challenge finalists and the World Agri-Tech Innovation Summit visit: www.worldagritechusa.com/2023-innovation-challenge