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agriculture

Uncovering the Connection between Oil and Agricultural Commodity Prices

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In today’s interconnected global economy, the relationship between oil prices and agricultural commodity prices is significant and complex.

Fluctuations in oil prices have far-reaching effects on production costs, consumer prices, and economic stability, impacting the agricultural sector.

The cost of fuel, derived from oil, for farming machinery, transportation, and irrigation plays a crucial role in determining the overall costs of agricultural production. [Read more…] about Uncovering the Connection between Oil and Agricultural Commodity Prices

Swiss agritech startup Ecorobotix raises $52 million in new funding

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Ecorobotix, the Swiss manufacturer of ARA, an AI powered plant-by-plant recognition and a precision smart sprayer system, has completed a $52 million (CHF 46 million) funding round.

The round was jointly led by AQTON Private Equity and Cibus Capital, with additional investments from Swisscanto Invest/Swisscanto Growth Fund I, Yara Growth Ventures, Flexstone Partners, and from existing investors including Swisscom Ventures, BASF Venture Capital, 4FOX Ventures, and Verve Ventures.

The funding will accelerate Ecorobotix’s geographic expansion across new and existing markets and accelerate new product development. [Read more…] about Swiss agritech startup Ecorobotix raises $52 million in new funding

Your gateway to explore vertical farming industry in the Gulf – GVF 2023 will go live this September in Dubai

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As days pass and the Middle East’s largest and only exclusive event – the Global Vertical Farming Show 2023 by TAB group in Dubai happening on 13th and 14th September, gets near – it is being exceptionally acclaimed and talked about amongst the industry professionals.

The summit will bring together experts, innovators, and leaders in the vertical farming industry from across the globe.

The event will serve as a platform for discussions on the latest trends, ideas, and innovative solutions in the field of vertical farming, and its potential to transform the future of agriculture and food industry. [Read more…] about Your gateway to explore vertical farming industry in the Gulf – GVF 2023 will go live this September in Dubai

CNH Industrial adds new automation and autonomy solutions to agtech portfolio

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CNH Industrial debuted its latest automation and autonomy solutions at its Tech Day in Phoenix, Arizona, USA, at the start of this year.

New Driverless Tillage and Driver Assist Harvest solutions from Raven, and Baler Automation from Case IH and New Holland, deliver automation and autonomous equipment enhancements.

They all help solve farming’s biggest challenges: to increase productivity and to do more with less resources, more sustainably. These latest technology developments form part of our agtech roadmap. [Read more…] about CNH Industrial adds new automation and autonomy solutions to agtech portfolio

Robotics and Automation in Gardening

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Robotics and automation in gardening can be quite challenging. For example, it is possible to increase crop yields while decreasing labor costs. But this requires that robotics be built with sustainability in mind. Read this article to learn about some of the challenges robotics face in agriculture.  [Read more…] about Robotics and Automation in Gardening

Robotics Plus unveils autonomous modular vehicle to ‘alleviate agriculture labour shortages’

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Robotics Plus, a New Zealand-based agritech company, has launched an autonomous multi-use, modular vehicle platform for agriculture designed to carry out a variety of orchard and vineyard machine tasks – to “alleviate ongoing labor shortages and transform the industry”.

The multi-purpose unmanned ground vehicle (UGV) can be supervised in a fleet of vehicles by a single human operator. The vehicle uses a combination of vision systems and other technologies to sense the environment – to optimize tasks and allow intelligent and targeted application of inputs such as sprays.

Growers will be able to rotate multiple tools on the highly adaptable and configurable agriculture platform, depending on the day’s work – for jobs such as spraying, weed control, mulching, mowing and crop analysis. [Read more…] about Robotics Plus unveils autonomous modular vehicle to ‘alleviate agriculture labour shortages’

Solinftec unveils new sprayer robot for farms

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Solinftec, a global leader in agricultural digitalization, has unveiled a new sprayer robot for applications on farms and in agriculture.

The company says it is expanding its Solix Ag Robotics offerings. In addition to its Solix Scouting robot, the company has unveiled its Solix Sprayer robot designed to detect and spray weeds.

In partnership with the manufacturing, research, and development company, McKinney Corporation, who will produce and manufacture the Solix spray robot, this new cutting-edge technology is slated to become commercially available in 2023 to the entire agricultural market including farmers, cooperatives, and ag-retailers. [Read more…] about Solinftec unveils new sprayer robot for farms

AGCO taps mobility software experts Apex.AI for its robotic planting concept

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Apex.AI, a company developing safety-certified software for mobility and autonomous applications, says that AGCO, a worldwide manufacturer and distributor of agricultural machinery and precision agriculture technology, is adding new capabilities to its Fendt Xaver concept vehicle, an autonomous farming robot, by incorporating Apex.OS, a software development kit (SDK).

Apex.AI has enabled AGCO’s engineering team to integrate several autonomous driving components into the Fendt Xaver in a tight timeframe, including lidar object detection, collision checking and planning, using the state-of-the-art framework and developer tools that come with Apex.OS.

This technical partnership expands an existing relationship between the two companies. In December 2021, AGCO announced a strategic investment in Apex.AI. [Read more…] about AGCO taps mobility software experts Apex.AI for its robotic planting concept

Agtonomy raises another $5 million to develop technology platform for local agriculture

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Agtonomy, a hybrid autonomy and tele-assist service platform, has raised an additional $5 million in Seed II funding from strategic and venture investors Toyota Ventures, Flybridge, Hampton VC, E²JDJ and Momenta, for a total of $9 million in seed funding to date.

The startup, which is developing a platform for local agriculture, raised $4 million in its seed round from Grit Ventures, GV (formerly called Google Ventures), and Village Global, the venture firm backed by some of the world’s most successful entrepreneurs including Bill Gates, Jeff Bezos, and Michael Dell, in September last year.

This latest round will be used to accelerate development and trials of the Agtonomy platform to address the growing labor and sustainability challenges facing local agriculture. [Read more…] about Agtonomy raises another $5 million to develop technology platform for local agriculture

Hexagon NovAtel delivers ROS 2 compatible drivers to the OEM7 receiver

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Hexagon NovAtel has released its second purpose-built driver, powered by the latest series of the Robot Operating System, ROS 2.

The NovAtel OEM7 drivers are developed and managed by NovAtel engineers to provide an optimised interface for autonomy projects.

The drivers allow for quick incorporation of NovAtel’s OEM7 receivers into custom ROS 2 based applications. [Read more…] about Hexagon NovAtel delivers ROS 2 compatible drivers to the OEM7 receiver