21 Projects Democratizing Data for Farmers

On fields across the world, phones, tablets, drones, and other technologies are changing how food is grown. Through these devices, artificial intelligence (AI)--technology able to perform tasks that require human intelligence--may help farmers use the techniques they already know and trust on a bigger scale. And Big Data--data sets that reveal telling patterns about growth, yield, weather, and more--may help farmers make better decisions before crises strike. According to the report Refresh: Food Tech, From Soil to Supper released in 2018, AI and Big Data may help produce more food, use less water, limit resource consumption, redirect food waste, and lower food prices--all while improving the lives and incomes of farmers and food producers. "Recent advances have the potential for big breakthroughs in the ways we grow, store, transport, distribute, and consume food," says the Refresh Report.