AgEYE

Growers who run indoor and vertical farms are the audience for AgEYE, which supplies software, sensors and robotics to such operations. Its origins lie in computer vision that tracks single plants, and its website now describes a broader system spanning farm planning, construction and day-to-day running.

Software that runs the whole farm

AgEYE sells an ERP and manufacturing execution system (MES) that brings together production scheduling, labor administration, regulatory compliance and live operations. The company describes autonomous agents that detect and decide across a farm's fleet of racks, with a grower approving every change before it is made. Its digital twin shows each rack and shelf, and it adds alerts for anomalies.

Plant monitoring built on computer vision

The company uses cameras and deep learning models to track each plant and suggest changes, a method it calls per-plant visibility. It says its horticulture models can run on the internet-connected devices already present inside a farm, offline and without any dependence on the cloud. It describes its service as plant scientist as a service, delivered through a turnkey platform.

Three routes into indoor farming

According to the company, growers take one of three routes. An existing farm can be upgraded with sensors, vision, robotics and software, starting with a single zone and expanding as the numbers justify it. A new farm can be designed and built from the ground up, with racking, environmental control, automation and software treated as one system. Alternatively, a customer can buy farming as a service, in which AgEYE builds and runs the facility and the customer receives output under contract.

Robots that handle the trays

The tray robots handle seeding, transplanting, harvest, packing out, transport and tray cleaning. Scouting robots image every plant each day, and the system manages recipes, standard operating procedures and labor tracking. The company says these machines take on the heavy and repetitive work, while its AI proposes changes that the farm team then approves.

Market prices and a claimed cost reduction

The software links production costs to market prices. Orders become invoices, invoices become cost of goods sold per pound, and a live feed of USDA pricing across ten markets shows the margin for each crop and each customer. The company describes every cycle's results as feeding the next, so the network of farms improves over time.

AgEYE says its system can cut labor costs by more than half, and it presents that as its own claim. It also reports a 2020 award for indoor farming and a 2021 award for sensor solutions, and it notes that it is a member of the NVIDIA Inception program for AI startups.

AgEYE is an agricultural technology company that supplies software, sensors and robotics to indoor farms, vertical farms and greenhouses. It began with computer vision that watches individual plants, and its website now presents a wider platform covering farm planning, building and daily operation.

Products and services

• ERP and MES software: one platform for production planning, labour management, compliance and real-time operations.
• Plant monitoring with AI: cameras and models that track every plant and suggest changes, with a grower approving each one.
• Farm retrofits: sensors, vision, robotics and software added to an existing facility, starting with a single zone.
• New farm builds: racking, environment control, automation and software designed together as one system.
• Tray robotics: machines for seeding, transplanting, harvest, packout, transport and tray cleaning.
• Farming-as-a-service: AgEYE builds and runs the farm while the customer receives contracted output.

Who it serves

Growers who already run an indoor farm and want to upgrade it, operators planning a new site, and buyers who want supply without operating a farm.

Key facts

• Programmes: Member of the NVIDIA Inception programme for AI startups.
• Recognition: Says it was named Indoor Farming Company of the Year in 2020 and Overall Sensor Solution of the Year in 2021.