Tesseract brings military drone tech to US agriculture
Robotics company and defense contractor Tesseract Ventures is repurposing its military drone tech for use on U.S. farms.
The Tesseract Ag Drone uses computer vision to give farmers real-time information on their fields. The drone is meant to be paired with the company’s synthesis software, which analyzes raw data to provide actionable insight.
Kansas-based Tesseract is entering the agricultural drone market as the U.S. weighs a ban on China-based DJI, a global leading manufacturer of unmanned aerial vehicles. The company recently partnered with Landus Farm Cooperative in Iowa to soft launch the technology through an initiative first started under a Department of Defense program.
“Tesseract Ventures is not just launching a new American-made drone product; we are ushering in a new era of precision agriculture,” Tesseract CEO John Boucard said in a statement. “Our commitment to agricultural innovation is both military-proven and farmer-led, offering enhanced capabilities and strategic benefits to our national farmers and co-op partners.”
— Sarah Zimmerman
AI startup raises $2.5M for vineyard sensor tech
Automation startup Farmblox has raised $2.5 million to expand its in-field sensors to new markets including vineyards and orchards.
The Massachusetts-based firm leverages machine-learning sensor technologies to help farmers monitor their operations without having to walk around their fields. Farmblox’s sensors can quickly identify operational issues like irrigation leaks, weather risks or equipment failure.
The platform has the potential to cut labor costs up to 50% and reduce water usage, Nathan Rosenberg, co-founder and CEO of Farmblox, said in a LinkedIn post this week. The company has expanded the tool to monitor irrigation systems in vineyards and track farms’ carbon sequestration efforts.
The company currently has 55 farm customers covering more than 14,000 acres in North America. The funding round was led by Hyperplane, with participation from Slow Ventures, MHS Capital and Service Provider Capital.
“This new funding will bring us closer to achieving our mission of a practical farm-scale digital platform for producers to reduce labor and deploy the latest in climate and water sustainability practices at the press of a button,” Rosenberg wrote.
Farmblox has already implemented its technology on high-margin maple farms, vineyards and orchards, where the sensors can remain after a harvest, TechCrunch reported. Rosenberg told the publication he wants to move to lower-margin crops in the future.
— Nathan Owens
Tyson engages 5 supply chain startups for potential partnerships
Meat giant Tyson Foods has selected five startups to further discussions around potential partnerships and other “high-impact opportunities.”
Tyson picked the startups following its Demo Day, where early-stage firms from seven U.S. states, Canada and the U.K. pitched their supply chain solutions to executives at the company’s world headquarters. Twelve startups participated, Tyson said in a release.
The five companies chosen were Acoustic Extra Freezing (Paradigm Labs), JLE Truckwash, Orderful, Pactum AI and SnoFox. The startups all develop solutions for a more efficient supply chain, focusing on issues such as industrial refrigeration, truck fleet cleaning, data exchange and supplier negotiations.
“Transformational solutions come from all over, and to see so much strategic potential in one place was inspiring,” Heidi Solomon, Tyson vice president of global strategy, said in a statement. “The global reach and scale of Tyson Foods can help these companies apply their groundbreaking solutions to make a difference.”
— Sarah Zimmerman