Japan agriculture crunch -- can AI-powered autonomous tractors help? - Tech Wire Asia

Japan's farming market is possibly undergoing its twilight years with a significantly greying community, and that's why smart, autonomous tractors being developed by machine maker Kubota Tractor Corporation could hold commercial appeal. According to Japan's Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fishing, the number of Japanese engaged primarily in farming dropped to 1.7 million in 2014 from 1.86 million in 2011. About 515,000 farmers were 75 years or older in 2014. By comparison, only 83,000 were 39 years old or younger -- and that number was down by 7,000 from just three years earlier, reports USA Today. To make matters more pressing, Japan's population is shrinking by a quarter of a million people a year, and the number of births in 2014 was the lowest since record-keeping began in 1899, according to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare.