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In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

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The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

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Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

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\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

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\n

At SVIC we like to think we had a hand in driving all this activity.  We can\u2019t take all the credit of course, our function having been simply to help the CBH team understand not only the solutions technology offers today but also the answers it might be able to provide tomorrow, given the right investments. All we could do was offer a stimulus, with any further steps being CBH\u2019s to make, and make alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

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\n

Since its visit with us to Silicon Valley, CBH has launched its own software platform and taken steps to significantly optimize its supply chain operations. Clearly, the company has fully taken to heart the need for innovation. No doubt it will soon be partnering with a growing list of startups and setting off on all manner of interesting ventures to discover the next big breakthrough in grain agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC we like to think we had a hand in driving all this activity.  We can\u2019t take all the credit of course, our function having been simply to help the CBH team understand not only the solutions technology offers today but also the answers it might be able to provide tomorrow, given the right investments. All we could do was offer a stimulus, with any further steps being CBH\u2019s to make, and make alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

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\n

Plug in and Play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since its visit with us to Silicon Valley, CBH has launched its own software platform and taken steps to significantly optimize its supply chain operations. Clearly, the company has fully taken to heart the need for innovation. No doubt it will soon be partnering with a growing list of startups and setting off on all manner of interesting ventures to discover the next big breakthrough in grain agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC we like to think we had a hand in driving all this activity.  We can\u2019t take all the credit of course, our function having been simply to help the CBH team understand not only the solutions technology offers today but also the answers it might be able to provide tomorrow, given the right investments. All we could do was offer a stimulus, with any further steps being CBH\u2019s to make, and make alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

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\n

Unfortunately for CBH, Blue River Technology\u2019s work is currently focused on crops other than grain. But just the fact of seeing the pioneering work being done by the startup was enough to convince the Australian exporter once and for all that being more involved in the Silicon Valley scene is vital. The team realized that if CBH could be the one to discover the next revolutionary breakthrough in wheat and barley cultivation, the advantages to the business could be almost inconceivably large.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plug in and Play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since its visit with us to Silicon Valley, CBH has launched its own software platform and taken steps to significantly optimize its supply chain operations. Clearly, the company has fully taken to heart the need for innovation. No doubt it will soon be partnering with a growing list of startups and setting off on all manner of interesting ventures to discover the next big breakthrough in grain agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC we like to think we had a hand in driving all this activity.  We can\u2019t take all the credit of course, our function having been simply to help the CBH team understand not only the solutions technology offers today but also the answers it might be able to provide tomorrow, given the right investments. All we could do was offer a stimulus, with any further steps being CBH\u2019s to make, and make alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

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\n

The appeal was in the marriage of computer vision and artificial intelligence: Blue River Technology\u2019s smart machines not only independently spray crops with herbicides to eliminate weeds, they also analyze each plant in a field to determine exactly what chemicals are needed where and in what quantities. Using this approach the startup is hoping it can do some good for the world by tackling herbicide-resistant weeds, a growing challenge to agriculture globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/WS3JRydN9sQ\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately for CBH, Blue River Technology\u2019s work is currently focused on crops other than grain. But just the fact of seeing the pioneering work being done by the startup was enough to convince the Australian exporter once and for all that being more involved in the Silicon Valley scene is vital. The team realized that if CBH could be the one to discover the next revolutionary breakthrough in wheat and barley cultivation, the advantages to the business could be almost inconceivably large.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plug in and Play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since its visit with us to Silicon Valley, CBH has launched its own software platform and taken steps to significantly optimize its supply chain operations. Clearly, the company has fully taken to heart the need for innovation. No doubt it will soon be partnering with a growing list of startups and setting off on all manner of interesting ventures to discover the next big breakthrough in grain agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC we like to think we had a hand in driving all this activity.  We can\u2019t take all the credit of course, our function having been simply to help the CBH team understand not only the solutions technology offers today but also the answers it might be able to provide tomorrow, given the right investments. All we could do was offer a stimulus, with any further steps being CBH\u2019s to make, and make alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

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\n

So far, so innovative. But the best, as they say, was yet to come. It wasn\u2019t until the fifth and final day of the tour that CBH met Blue River Technology, a startup which proved to be the most inspiring of all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The appeal was in the marriage of computer vision and artificial intelligence: Blue River Technology\u2019s smart machines not only independently spray crops with herbicides to eliminate weeds, they also analyze each plant in a field to determine exactly what chemicals are needed where and in what quantities. Using this approach the startup is hoping it can do some good for the world by tackling herbicide-resistant weeds, a growing challenge to agriculture globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/WS3JRydN9sQ\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately for CBH, Blue River Technology\u2019s work is currently focused on crops other than grain. But just the fact of seeing the pioneering work being done by the startup was enough to convince the Australian exporter once and for all that being more involved in the Silicon Valley scene is vital. The team realized that if CBH could be the one to discover the next revolutionary breakthrough in wheat and barley cultivation, the advantages to the business could be almost inconceivably large.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plug in and Play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since its visit with us to Silicon Valley, CBH has launched its own software platform and taken steps to significantly optimize its supply chain operations. Clearly, the company has fully taken to heart the need for innovation. No doubt it will soon be partnering with a growing list of startups and setting off on all manner of interesting ventures to discover the next big breakthrough in grain agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC we like to think we had a hand in driving all this activity.  We can\u2019t take all the credit of course, our function having been simply to help the CBH team understand not only the solutions technology offers today but also the answers it might be able to provide tomorrow, given the right investments. All we could do was offer a stimulus, with any further steps being CBH\u2019s to make, and make alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

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\n
\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

So far, so innovative. But the best, as they say, was yet to come. It wasn\u2019t until the fifth and final day of the tour that CBH met Blue River Technology, a startup which proved to be the most inspiring of all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The appeal was in the marriage of computer vision and artificial intelligence: Blue River Technology\u2019s smart machines not only independently spray crops with herbicides to eliminate weeds, they also analyze each plant in a field to determine exactly what chemicals are needed where and in what quantities. Using this approach the startup is hoping it can do some good for the world by tackling herbicide-resistant weeds, a growing challenge to agriculture globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/WS3JRydN9sQ\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately for CBH, Blue River Technology\u2019s work is currently focused on crops other than grain. But just the fact of seeing the pioneering work being done by the startup was enough to convince the Australian exporter once and for all that being more involved in the Silicon Valley scene is vital. The team realized that if CBH could be the one to discover the next revolutionary breakthrough in wheat and barley cultivation, the advantages to the business could be almost inconceivably large.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plug in and Play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since its visit with us to Silicon Valley, CBH has launched its own software platform and taken steps to significantly optimize its supply chain operations. Clearly, the company has fully taken to heart the need for innovation. No doubt it will soon be partnering with a growing list of startups and setting off on all manner of interesting ventures to discover the next big breakthrough in grain agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC we like to think we had a hand in driving all this activity.  We can\u2019t take all the credit of course, our function having been simply to help the CBH team understand not only the solutions technology offers today but also the answers it might be able to provide tomorrow, given the right investments. All we could do was offer a stimulus, with any further steps being CBH\u2019s to make, and make alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

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\n

Further learnings came at a meeting with Granular where CBH found out about how cloud computing and big data analytics can help growers better manage resources in order to increase yields and profits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

So far, so innovative. But the best, as they say, was yet to come. It wasn\u2019t until the fifth and final day of the tour that CBH met Blue River Technology, a startup which proved to be the most inspiring of all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The appeal was in the marriage of computer vision and artificial intelligence: Blue River Technology\u2019s smart machines not only independently spray crops with herbicides to eliminate weeds, they also analyze each plant in a field to determine exactly what chemicals are needed where and in what quantities. Using this approach the startup is hoping it can do some good for the world by tackling herbicide-resistant weeds, a growing challenge to agriculture globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/WS3JRydN9sQ\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately for CBH, Blue River Technology\u2019s work is currently focused on crops other than grain. But just the fact of seeing the pioneering work being done by the startup was enough to convince the Australian exporter once and for all that being more involved in the Silicon Valley scene is vital. The team realized that if CBH could be the one to discover the next revolutionary breakthrough in wheat and barley cultivation, the advantages to the business could be almost inconceivably large.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plug in and Play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since its visit with us to Silicon Valley, CBH has launched its own software platform and taken steps to significantly optimize its supply chain operations. Clearly, the company has fully taken to heart the need for innovation. No doubt it will soon be partnering with a growing list of startups and setting off on all manner of interesting ventures to discover the next big breakthrough in grain agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC we like to think we had a hand in driving all this activity.  We can\u2019t take all the credit of course, our function having been simply to help the CBH team understand not only the solutions technology offers today but also the answers it might be able to provide tomorrow, given the right investments. All we could do was offer a stimulus, with any further steps being CBH\u2019s to make, and make alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

Search

Latest

\n

That characterization is something of a stereotype but it proved to hold true for CBH. That was why we introduced the company to Planet, a startup building and operating satellites to collect data and imagery on the Earth\u2019s landmass. The application of such technology to agriculture and the advantages it can bring to farmers were immediately clear to CBH, which was eager to adopt Planet\u2019s approach for a platform of its own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further learnings came at a meeting with Granular where CBH found out about how cloud computing and big data analytics can help growers better manage resources in order to increase yields and profits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

So far, so innovative. But the best, as they say, was yet to come. It wasn\u2019t until the fifth and final day of the tour that CBH met Blue River Technology, a startup which proved to be the most inspiring of all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The appeal was in the marriage of computer vision and artificial intelligence: Blue River Technology\u2019s smart machines not only independently spray crops with herbicides to eliminate weeds, they also analyze each plant in a field to determine exactly what chemicals are needed where and in what quantities. Using this approach the startup is hoping it can do some good for the world by tackling herbicide-resistant weeds, a growing challenge to agriculture globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/WS3JRydN9sQ\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately for CBH, Blue River Technology\u2019s work is currently focused on crops other than grain. But just the fact of seeing the pioneering work being done by the startup was enough to convince the Australian exporter once and for all that being more involved in the Silicon Valley scene is vital. The team realized that if CBH could be the one to discover the next revolutionary breakthrough in wheat and barley cultivation, the advantages to the business could be almost inconceivably large.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plug in and Play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since its visit with us to Silicon Valley, CBH has launched its own software platform and taken steps to significantly optimize its supply chain operations. Clearly, the company has fully taken to heart the need for innovation. No doubt it will soon be partnering with a growing list of startups and setting off on all manner of interesting ventures to discover the next big breakthrough in grain agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC we like to think we had a hand in driving all this activity.  We can\u2019t take all the credit of course, our function having been simply to help the CBH team understand not only the solutions technology offers today but also the answers it might be able to provide tomorrow, given the right investments. All we could do was offer a stimulus, with any further steps being CBH\u2019s to make, and make alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

Search

Latest

\n

One of our specialties at SVIC is bridging the gap between corporates and early stage enterprises. Although seemingly inherently opposed to one another, the two classes of business are in many ways a natural fit. Where corporations have the money and the client base startups crave, startups have the innovative ideas and tech-savvy personnel so often needed at big companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That characterization is something of a stereotype but it proved to hold true for CBH. That was why we introduced the company to Planet, a startup building and operating satellites to collect data and imagery on the Earth\u2019s landmass. The application of such technology to agriculture and the advantages it can bring to farmers were immediately clear to CBH, which was eager to adopt Planet\u2019s approach for a platform of its own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further learnings came at a meeting with Granular where CBH found out about how cloud computing and big data analytics can help growers better manage resources in order to increase yields and profits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

So far, so innovative. But the best, as they say, was yet to come. It wasn\u2019t until the fifth and final day of the tour that CBH met Blue River Technology, a startup which proved to be the most inspiring of all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The appeal was in the marriage of computer vision and artificial intelligence: Blue River Technology\u2019s smart machines not only independently spray crops with herbicides to eliminate weeds, they also analyze each plant in a field to determine exactly what chemicals are needed where and in what quantities. Using this approach the startup is hoping it can do some good for the world by tackling herbicide-resistant weeds, a growing challenge to agriculture globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/WS3JRydN9sQ\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately for CBH, Blue River Technology\u2019s work is currently focused on crops other than grain. But just the fact of seeing the pioneering work being done by the startup was enough to convince the Australian exporter once and for all that being more involved in the Silicon Valley scene is vital. The team realized that if CBH could be the one to discover the next revolutionary breakthrough in wheat and barley cultivation, the advantages to the business could be almost inconceivably large.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plug in and Play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since its visit with us to Silicon Valley, CBH has launched its own software platform and taken steps to significantly optimize its supply chain operations. Clearly, the company has fully taken to heart the need for innovation. No doubt it will soon be partnering with a growing list of startups and setting off on all manner of interesting ventures to discover the next big breakthrough in grain agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC we like to think we had a hand in driving all this activity.  We can\u2019t take all the credit of course, our function having been simply to help the CBH team understand not only the solutions technology offers today but also the answers it might be able to provide tomorrow, given the right investments. All we could do was offer a stimulus, with any further steps being CBH\u2019s to make, and make alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

Search

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\n

Startup Engagement<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One of our specialties at SVIC is bridging the gap between corporates and early stage enterprises. Although seemingly inherently opposed to one another, the two classes of business are in many ways a natural fit. Where corporations have the money and the client base startups crave, startups have the innovative ideas and tech-savvy personnel so often needed at big companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That characterization is something of a stereotype but it proved to hold true for CBH. That was why we introduced the company to Planet, a startup building and operating satellites to collect data and imagery on the Earth\u2019s landmass. The application of such technology to agriculture and the advantages it can bring to farmers were immediately clear to CBH, which was eager to adopt Planet\u2019s approach for a platform of its own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further learnings came at a meeting with Granular where CBH found out about how cloud computing and big data analytics can help growers better manage resources in order to increase yields and profits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

So far, so innovative. But the best, as they say, was yet to come. It wasn\u2019t until the fifth and final day of the tour that CBH met Blue River Technology, a startup which proved to be the most inspiring of all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The appeal was in the marriage of computer vision and artificial intelligence: Blue River Technology\u2019s smart machines not only independently spray crops with herbicides to eliminate weeds, they also analyze each plant in a field to determine exactly what chemicals are needed where and in what quantities. Using this approach the startup is hoping it can do some good for the world by tackling herbicide-resistant weeds, a growing challenge to agriculture globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/WS3JRydN9sQ\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately for CBH, Blue River Technology\u2019s work is currently focused on crops other than grain. But just the fact of seeing the pioneering work being done by the startup was enough to convince the Australian exporter once and for all that being more involved in the Silicon Valley scene is vital. The team realized that if CBH could be the one to discover the next revolutionary breakthrough in wheat and barley cultivation, the advantages to the business could be almost inconceivably large.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plug in and Play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since its visit with us to Silicon Valley, CBH has launched its own software platform and taken steps to significantly optimize its supply chain operations. Clearly, the company has fully taken to heart the need for innovation. No doubt it will soon be partnering with a growing list of startups and setting off on all manner of interesting ventures to discover the next big breakthrough in grain agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC we like to think we had a hand in driving all this activity.  We can\u2019t take all the credit of course, our function having been simply to help the CBH team understand not only the solutions technology offers today but also the answers it might be able to provide tomorrow, given the right investments. All we could do was offer a stimulus, with any further steps being CBH\u2019s to make, and make alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

Search

Latest

\n

CBH\u2019s program was five days long. Here are the highlights:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Startup Engagement<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One of our specialties at SVIC is bridging the gap between corporates and early stage enterprises. Although seemingly inherently opposed to one another, the two classes of business are in many ways a natural fit. Where corporations have the money and the client base startups crave, startups have the innovative ideas and tech-savvy personnel so often needed at big companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That characterization is something of a stereotype but it proved to hold true for CBH. That was why we introduced the company to Planet, a startup building and operating satellites to collect data and imagery on the Earth\u2019s landmass. The application of such technology to agriculture and the advantages it can bring to farmers were immediately clear to CBH, which was eager to adopt Planet\u2019s approach for a platform of its own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further learnings came at a meeting with Granular where CBH found out about how cloud computing and big data analytics can help growers better manage resources in order to increase yields and profits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

So far, so innovative. But the best, as they say, was yet to come. It wasn\u2019t until the fifth and final day of the tour that CBH met Blue River Technology, a startup which proved to be the most inspiring of all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The appeal was in the marriage of computer vision and artificial intelligence: Blue River Technology\u2019s smart machines not only independently spray crops with herbicides to eliminate weeds, they also analyze each plant in a field to determine exactly what chemicals are needed where and in what quantities. Using this approach the startup is hoping it can do some good for the world by tackling herbicide-resistant weeds, a growing challenge to agriculture globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/WS3JRydN9sQ\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately for CBH, Blue River Technology\u2019s work is currently focused on crops other than grain. But just the fact of seeing the pioneering work being done by the startup was enough to convince the Australian exporter once and for all that being more involved in the Silicon Valley scene is vital. The team realized that if CBH could be the one to discover the next revolutionary breakthrough in wheat and barley cultivation, the advantages to the business could be almost inconceivably large.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plug in and Play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since its visit with us to Silicon Valley, CBH has launched its own software platform and taken steps to significantly optimize its supply chain operations. Clearly, the company has fully taken to heart the need for innovation. No doubt it will soon be partnering with a growing list of startups and setting off on all manner of interesting ventures to discover the next big breakthrough in grain agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC we like to think we had a hand in driving all this activity.  We can\u2019t take all the credit of course, our function having been simply to help the CBH team understand not only the solutions technology offers today but also the answers it might be able to provide tomorrow, given the right investments. All we could do was offer a stimulus, with any further steps being CBH\u2019s to make, and make alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

Search

Latest

\n

At SVIC, we took our usual course of action: we studied the list of CBH\u2019s problems or \u201cpain points\u201d as we like to call them, and custom-designed a tour of Silicon Valley. The goal was to connect the grain exporter with some of AgriTech\u2019s hottest startups and introduce it to the core principles of corporate innovative as they are being practiced today by leading companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CBH\u2019s program was five days long. Here are the highlights:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Startup Engagement<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One of our specialties at SVIC is bridging the gap between corporates and early stage enterprises. Although seemingly inherently opposed to one another, the two classes of business are in many ways a natural fit. Where corporations have the money and the client base startups crave, startups have the innovative ideas and tech-savvy personnel so often needed at big companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That characterization is something of a stereotype but it proved to hold true for CBH. That was why we introduced the company to Planet, a startup building and operating satellites to collect data and imagery on the Earth\u2019s landmass. The application of such technology to agriculture and the advantages it can bring to farmers were immediately clear to CBH, which was eager to adopt Planet\u2019s approach for a platform of its own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further learnings came at a meeting with Granular where CBH found out about how cloud computing and big data analytics can help growers better manage resources in order to increase yields and profits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

So far, so innovative. But the best, as they say, was yet to come. It wasn\u2019t until the fifth and final day of the tour that CBH met Blue River Technology, a startup which proved to be the most inspiring of all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The appeal was in the marriage of computer vision and artificial intelligence: Blue River Technology\u2019s smart machines not only independently spray crops with herbicides to eliminate weeds, they also analyze each plant in a field to determine exactly what chemicals are needed where and in what quantities. Using this approach the startup is hoping it can do some good for the world by tackling herbicide-resistant weeds, a growing challenge to agriculture globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/WS3JRydN9sQ\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately for CBH, Blue River Technology\u2019s work is currently focused on crops other than grain. But just the fact of seeing the pioneering work being done by the startup was enough to convince the Australian exporter once and for all that being more involved in the Silicon Valley scene is vital. The team realized that if CBH could be the one to discover the next revolutionary breakthrough in wheat and barley cultivation, the advantages to the business could be almost inconceivably large.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plug in and Play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since its visit with us to Silicon Valley, CBH has launched its own software platform and taken steps to significantly optimize its supply chain operations. Clearly, the company has fully taken to heart the need for innovation. No doubt it will soon be partnering with a growing list of startups and setting off on all manner of interesting ventures to discover the next big breakthrough in grain agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC we like to think we had a hand in driving all this activity.  We can\u2019t take all the credit of course, our function having been simply to help the CBH team understand not only the solutions technology offers today but also the answers it might be able to provide tomorrow, given the right investments. All we could do was offer a stimulus, with any further steps being CBH\u2019s to make, and make alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

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\n

What the team from Australia certainly did know was where it was falling short; namely, a lack of collaboration with the startup ecosystem, a supply chain in need of digitization and a dearth of high-tech solutions to offer its clients, the majority of whom are farmers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC, we took our usual course of action: we studied the list of CBH\u2019s problems or \u201cpain points\u201d as we like to call them, and custom-designed a tour of Silicon Valley. The goal was to connect the grain exporter with some of AgriTech\u2019s hottest startups and introduce it to the core principles of corporate innovative as they are being practiced today by leading companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CBH\u2019s program was five days long. Here are the highlights:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Startup Engagement<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One of our specialties at SVIC is bridging the gap between corporates and early stage enterprises. Although seemingly inherently opposed to one another, the two classes of business are in many ways a natural fit. Where corporations have the money and the client base startups crave, startups have the innovative ideas and tech-savvy personnel so often needed at big companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That characterization is something of a stereotype but it proved to hold true for CBH. That was why we introduced the company to Planet, a startup building and operating satellites to collect data and imagery on the Earth\u2019s landmass. The application of such technology to agriculture and the advantages it can bring to farmers were immediately clear to CBH, which was eager to adopt Planet\u2019s approach for a platform of its own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further learnings came at a meeting with Granular where CBH found out about how cloud computing and big data analytics can help growers better manage resources in order to increase yields and profits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

So far, so innovative. But the best, as they say, was yet to come. It wasn\u2019t until the fifth and final day of the tour that CBH met Blue River Technology, a startup which proved to be the most inspiring of all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The appeal was in the marriage of computer vision and artificial intelligence: Blue River Technology\u2019s smart machines not only independently spray crops with herbicides to eliminate weeds, they also analyze each plant in a field to determine exactly what chemicals are needed where and in what quantities. Using this approach the startup is hoping it can do some good for the world by tackling herbicide-resistant weeds, a growing challenge to agriculture globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/WS3JRydN9sQ\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately for CBH, Blue River Technology\u2019s work is currently focused on crops other than grain. But just the fact of seeing the pioneering work being done by the startup was enough to convince the Australian exporter once and for all that being more involved in the Silicon Valley scene is vital. The team realized that if CBH could be the one to discover the next revolutionary breakthrough in wheat and barley cultivation, the advantages to the business could be almost inconceivably large.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plug in and Play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since its visit with us to Silicon Valley, CBH has launched its own software platform and taken steps to significantly optimize its supply chain operations. Clearly, the company has fully taken to heart the need for innovation. No doubt it will soon be partnering with a growing list of startups and setting off on all manner of interesting ventures to discover the next big breakthrough in grain agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC we like to think we had a hand in driving all this activity.  We can\u2019t take all the credit of course, our function having been simply to help the CBH team understand not only the solutions technology offers today but also the answers it might be able to provide tomorrow, given the right investments. All we could do was offer a stimulus, with any further steps being CBH\u2019s to make, and make alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

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\n

With CBH, however, we could not make any such assumptions. Unlike FinTech and its rising superstars (see Stripe and Coinbase<\/a>, among others) the world of AgriTech is somewhat more obscure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/zWnWL-wEJgs\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What the team from Australia certainly did know was where it was falling short; namely, a lack of collaboration with the startup ecosystem, a supply chain in need of digitization and a dearth of high-tech solutions to offer its clients, the majority of whom are farmers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC, we took our usual course of action: we studied the list of CBH\u2019s problems or \u201cpain points\u201d as we like to call them, and custom-designed a tour of Silicon Valley. The goal was to connect the grain exporter with some of AgriTech\u2019s hottest startups and introduce it to the core principles of corporate innovative as they are being practiced today by leading companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CBH\u2019s program was five days long. Here are the highlights:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Startup Engagement<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One of our specialties at SVIC is bridging the gap between corporates and early stage enterprises. Although seemingly inherently opposed to one another, the two classes of business are in many ways a natural fit. Where corporations have the money and the client base startups crave, startups have the innovative ideas and tech-savvy personnel so often needed at big companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That characterization is something of a stereotype but it proved to hold true for CBH. That was why we introduced the company to Planet, a startup building and operating satellites to collect data and imagery on the Earth\u2019s landmass. The application of such technology to agriculture and the advantages it can bring to farmers were immediately clear to CBH, which was eager to adopt Planet\u2019s approach for a platform of its own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further learnings came at a meeting with Granular where CBH found out about how cloud computing and big data analytics can help growers better manage resources in order to increase yields and profits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

So far, so innovative. But the best, as they say, was yet to come. It wasn\u2019t until the fifth and final day of the tour that CBH met Blue River Technology, a startup which proved to be the most inspiring of all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The appeal was in the marriage of computer vision and artificial intelligence: Blue River Technology\u2019s smart machines not only independently spray crops with herbicides to eliminate weeds, they also analyze each plant in a field to determine exactly what chemicals are needed where and in what quantities. Using this approach the startup is hoping it can do some good for the world by tackling herbicide-resistant weeds, a growing challenge to agriculture globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/WS3JRydN9sQ\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately for CBH, Blue River Technology\u2019s work is currently focused on crops other than grain. But just the fact of seeing the pioneering work being done by the startup was enough to convince the Australian exporter once and for all that being more involved in the Silicon Valley scene is vital. The team realized that if CBH could be the one to discover the next revolutionary breakthrough in wheat and barley cultivation, the advantages to the business could be almost inconceivably large.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plug in and Play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since its visit with us to Silicon Valley, CBH has launched its own software platform and taken steps to significantly optimize its supply chain operations. Clearly, the company has fully taken to heart the need for innovation. No doubt it will soon be partnering with a growing list of startups and setting off on all manner of interesting ventures to discover the next big breakthrough in grain agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC we like to think we had a hand in driving all this activity.  We can\u2019t take all the credit of course, our function having been simply to help the CBH team understand not only the solutions technology offers today but also the answers it might be able to provide tomorrow, given the right investments. All we could do was offer a stimulus, with any further steps being CBH\u2019s to make, and make alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

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\n

We were, of course, unfazed by this. That said, the recent explosion of interest in bitcoin and the general rise in awareness globally of the influence of FinTech as an offshoot of the financial services sector meant that when it came to Bank of Queensland\u2019s tour, we were able to take for granted that the company\u2019s executives already had a reasonable understanding of what they were getting themselves into before they set foot in Northern California.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With CBH, however, we could not make any such assumptions. Unlike FinTech and its rising superstars (see Stripe and Coinbase<\/a>, among others) the world of AgriTech is somewhat more obscure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/zWnWL-wEJgs\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What the team from Australia certainly did know was where it was falling short; namely, a lack of collaboration with the startup ecosystem, a supply chain in need of digitization and a dearth of high-tech solutions to offer its clients, the majority of whom are farmers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC, we took our usual course of action: we studied the list of CBH\u2019s problems or \u201cpain points\u201d as we like to call them, and custom-designed a tour of Silicon Valley. The goal was to connect the grain exporter with some of AgriTech\u2019s hottest startups and introduce it to the core principles of corporate innovative as they are being practiced today by leading companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CBH\u2019s program was five days long. Here are the highlights:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Startup Engagement<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One of our specialties at SVIC is bridging the gap between corporates and early stage enterprises. Although seemingly inherently opposed to one another, the two classes of business are in many ways a natural fit. Where corporations have the money and the client base startups crave, startups have the innovative ideas and tech-savvy personnel so often needed at big companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That characterization is something of a stereotype but it proved to hold true for CBH. That was why we introduced the company to Planet, a startup building and operating satellites to collect data and imagery on the Earth\u2019s landmass. The application of such technology to agriculture and the advantages it can bring to farmers were immediately clear to CBH, which was eager to adopt Planet\u2019s approach for a platform of its own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further learnings came at a meeting with Granular where CBH found out about how cloud computing and big data analytics can help growers better manage resources in order to increase yields and profits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

So far, so innovative. But the best, as they say, was yet to come. It wasn\u2019t until the fifth and final day of the tour that CBH met Blue River Technology, a startup which proved to be the most inspiring of all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The appeal was in the marriage of computer vision and artificial intelligence: Blue River Technology\u2019s smart machines not only independently spray crops with herbicides to eliminate weeds, they also analyze each plant in a field to determine exactly what chemicals are needed where and in what quantities. Using this approach the startup is hoping it can do some good for the world by tackling herbicide-resistant weeds, a growing challenge to agriculture globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/WS3JRydN9sQ\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately for CBH, Blue River Technology\u2019s work is currently focused on crops other than grain. But just the fact of seeing the pioneering work being done by the startup was enough to convince the Australian exporter once and for all that being more involved in the Silicon Valley scene is vital. The team realized that if CBH could be the one to discover the next revolutionary breakthrough in wheat and barley cultivation, the advantages to the business could be almost inconceivably large.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plug in and Play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since its visit with us to Silicon Valley, CBH has launched its own software platform and taken steps to significantly optimize its supply chain operations. Clearly, the company has fully taken to heart the need for innovation. No doubt it will soon be partnering with a growing list of startups and setting off on all manner of interesting ventures to discover the next big breakthrough in grain agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC we like to think we had a hand in driving all this activity.  We can\u2019t take all the credit of course, our function having been simply to help the CBH team understand not only the solutions technology offers today but also the answers it might be able to provide tomorrow, given the right investments. All we could do was offer a stimulus, with any further steps being CBH\u2019s to make, and make alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

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\n

Yet for CBH<\/a>, Australia\u2019s biggest exporter of grain, a trip to Silicon Valley turned out to be hugely worthwhile. The organization had approached us at the Silicon Valley Innovation Center on the back of a positive recommendation from compatriots at Bank of Queensland (the financial institution took one of our tours not long ago). That was something which generated a certain amount of expectation on the client side and, therefore, a greater-than-usual amount of pressure on us to deliver.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We were, of course, unfazed by this. That said, the recent explosion of interest in bitcoin and the general rise in awareness globally of the influence of FinTech as an offshoot of the financial services sector meant that when it came to Bank of Queensland\u2019s tour, we were able to take for granted that the company\u2019s executives already had a reasonable understanding of what they were getting themselves into before they set foot in Northern California.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With CBH, however, we could not make any such assumptions. Unlike FinTech and its rising superstars (see Stripe and Coinbase<\/a>, among others) the world of AgriTech is somewhat more obscure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/zWnWL-wEJgs\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What the team from Australia certainly did know was where it was falling short; namely, a lack of collaboration with the startup ecosystem, a supply chain in need of digitization and a dearth of high-tech solutions to offer its clients, the majority of whom are farmers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC, we took our usual course of action: we studied the list of CBH\u2019s problems or \u201cpain points\u201d as we like to call them, and custom-designed a tour of Silicon Valley. The goal was to connect the grain exporter with some of AgriTech\u2019s hottest startups and introduce it to the core principles of corporate innovative as they are being practiced today by leading companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CBH\u2019s program was five days long. Here are the highlights:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Startup Engagement<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One of our specialties at SVIC is bridging the gap between corporates and early stage enterprises. Although seemingly inherently opposed to one another, the two classes of business are in many ways a natural fit. Where corporations have the money and the client base startups crave, startups have the innovative ideas and tech-savvy personnel so often needed at big companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That characterization is something of a stereotype but it proved to hold true for CBH. That was why we introduced the company to Planet, a startup building and operating satellites to collect data and imagery on the Earth\u2019s landmass. The application of such technology to agriculture and the advantages it can bring to farmers were immediately clear to CBH, which was eager to adopt Planet\u2019s approach for a platform of its own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further learnings came at a meeting with Granular where CBH found out about how cloud computing and big data analytics can help growers better manage resources in order to increase yields and profits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

So far, so innovative. But the best, as they say, was yet to come. It wasn\u2019t until the fifth and final day of the tour that CBH met Blue River Technology, a startup which proved to be the most inspiring of all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The appeal was in the marriage of computer vision and artificial intelligence: Blue River Technology\u2019s smart machines not only independently spray crops with herbicides to eliminate weeds, they also analyze each plant in a field to determine exactly what chemicals are needed where and in what quantities. Using this approach the startup is hoping it can do some good for the world by tackling herbicide-resistant weeds, a growing challenge to agriculture globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/WS3JRydN9sQ\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately for CBH, Blue River Technology\u2019s work is currently focused on crops other than grain. But just the fact of seeing the pioneering work being done by the startup was enough to convince the Australian exporter once and for all that being more involved in the Silicon Valley scene is vital. The team realized that if CBH could be the one to discover the next revolutionary breakthrough in wheat and barley cultivation, the advantages to the business could be almost inconceivably large.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plug in and Play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since its visit with us to Silicon Valley, CBH has launched its own software platform and taken steps to significantly optimize its supply chain operations. Clearly, the company has fully taken to heart the need for innovation. No doubt it will soon be partnering with a growing list of startups and setting off on all manner of interesting ventures to discover the next big breakthrough in grain agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC we like to think we had a hand in driving all this activity.  We can\u2019t take all the credit of course, our function having been simply to help the CBH team understand not only the solutions technology offers today but also the answers it might be able to provide tomorrow, given the right investments. All we could do was offer a stimulus, with any further steps being CBH\u2019s to make, and make alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

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\n

Silicon Valley is undoubtedly a place where any company can find innovative, technology-driven solutions to its thorniest problems. That is just as true for enterprises from the agricultural sector as from anywhere else, although the tech mecca has traditionally not been associated with breakthroughs in farming in the same way it has for many other industries; transport (Uber, Tesla), travel (Airbnb) and e-commerce (Amazon, eBay) being perhaps among the most notable examples.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet for CBH<\/a>, Australia\u2019s biggest exporter of grain, a trip to Silicon Valley turned out to be hugely worthwhile. The organization had approached us at the Silicon Valley Innovation Center on the back of a positive recommendation from compatriots at Bank of Queensland (the financial institution took one of our tours not long ago). That was something which generated a certain amount of expectation on the client side and, therefore, a greater-than-usual amount of pressure on us to deliver.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We were, of course, unfazed by this. That said, the recent explosion of interest in bitcoin and the general rise in awareness globally of the influence of FinTech as an offshoot of the financial services sector meant that when it came to Bank of Queensland\u2019s tour, we were able to take for granted that the company\u2019s executives already had a reasonable understanding of what they were getting themselves into before they set foot in Northern California.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With CBH, however, we could not make any such assumptions. Unlike FinTech and its rising superstars (see Stripe and Coinbase<\/a>, among others) the world of AgriTech is somewhat more obscure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/zWnWL-wEJgs\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What the team from Australia certainly did know was where it was falling short; namely, a lack of collaboration with the startup ecosystem, a supply chain in need of digitization and a dearth of high-tech solutions to offer its clients, the majority of whom are farmers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC, we took our usual course of action: we studied the list of CBH\u2019s problems or \u201cpain points\u201d as we like to call them, and custom-designed a tour of Silicon Valley. The goal was to connect the grain exporter with some of AgriTech\u2019s hottest startups and introduce it to the core principles of corporate innovative as they are being practiced today by leading companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CBH\u2019s program was five days long. Here are the highlights:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Startup Engagement<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One of our specialties at SVIC is bridging the gap between corporates and early stage enterprises. Although seemingly inherently opposed to one another, the two classes of business are in many ways a natural fit. Where corporations have the money and the client base startups crave, startups have the innovative ideas and tech-savvy personnel so often needed at big companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That characterization is something of a stereotype but it proved to hold true for CBH. That was why we introduced the company to Planet, a startup building and operating satellites to collect data and imagery on the Earth\u2019s landmass. The application of such technology to agriculture and the advantages it can bring to farmers were immediately clear to CBH, which was eager to adopt Planet\u2019s approach for a platform of its own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further learnings came at a meeting with Granular where CBH found out about how cloud computing and big data analytics can help growers better manage resources in order to increase yields and profits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

So far, so innovative. But the best, as they say, was yet to come. It wasn\u2019t until the fifth and final day of the tour that CBH met Blue River Technology, a startup which proved to be the most inspiring of all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The appeal was in the marriage of computer vision and artificial intelligence: Blue River Technology\u2019s smart machines not only independently spray crops with herbicides to eliminate weeds, they also analyze each plant in a field to determine exactly what chemicals are needed where and in what quantities. Using this approach the startup is hoping it can do some good for the world by tackling herbicide-resistant weeds, a growing challenge to agriculture globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/WS3JRydN9sQ\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately for CBH, Blue River Technology\u2019s work is currently focused on crops other than grain. But just the fact of seeing the pioneering work being done by the startup was enough to convince the Australian exporter once and for all that being more involved in the Silicon Valley scene is vital. The team realized that if CBH could be the one to discover the next revolutionary breakthrough in wheat and barley cultivation, the advantages to the business could be almost inconceivably large.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plug in and Play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since its visit with us to Silicon Valley, CBH has launched its own software platform and taken steps to significantly optimize its supply chain operations. Clearly, the company has fully taken to heart the need for innovation. No doubt it will soon be partnering with a growing list of startups and setting off on all manner of interesting ventures to discover the next big breakthrough in grain agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC we like to think we had a hand in driving all this activity.  We can\u2019t take all the credit of course, our function having been simply to help the CBH team understand not only the solutions technology offers today but also the answers it might be able to provide tomorrow, given the right investments. All we could do was offer a stimulus, with any further steps being CBH\u2019s to make, and make alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

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Click here to learn more.<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n","post_title":"TNT Reaps AgriTech Innovations from Silicon Valley Companies","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":760,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-04-17 15:00:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-04-17 22:00:00","post_content":"\n

Silicon Valley is undoubtedly a place where any company can find innovative, technology-driven solutions to its thorniest problems. That is just as true for enterprises from the agricultural sector as from anywhere else, although the tech mecca has traditionally not been associated with breakthroughs in farming in the same way it has for many other industries; transport (Uber, Tesla), travel (Airbnb) and e-commerce (Amazon, eBay) being perhaps among the most notable examples.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet for CBH<\/a>, Australia\u2019s biggest exporter of grain, a trip to Silicon Valley turned out to be hugely worthwhile. The organization had approached us at the Silicon Valley Innovation Center on the back of a positive recommendation from compatriots at Bank of Queensland (the financial institution took one of our tours not long ago). That was something which generated a certain amount of expectation on the client side and, therefore, a greater-than-usual amount of pressure on us to deliver.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We were, of course, unfazed by this. That said, the recent explosion of interest in bitcoin and the general rise in awareness globally of the influence of FinTech as an offshoot of the financial services sector meant that when it came to Bank of Queensland\u2019s tour, we were able to take for granted that the company\u2019s executives already had a reasonable understanding of what they were getting themselves into before they set foot in Northern California.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With CBH, however, we could not make any such assumptions. Unlike FinTech and its rising superstars (see Stripe and Coinbase<\/a>, among others) the world of AgriTech is somewhat more obscure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/zWnWL-wEJgs\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What the team from Australia certainly did know was where it was falling short; namely, a lack of collaboration with the startup ecosystem, a supply chain in need of digitization and a dearth of high-tech solutions to offer its clients, the majority of whom are farmers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC, we took our usual course of action: we studied the list of CBH\u2019s problems or \u201cpain points\u201d as we like to call them, and custom-designed a tour of Silicon Valley. The goal was to connect the grain exporter with some of AgriTech\u2019s hottest startups and introduce it to the core principles of corporate innovative as they are being practiced today by leading companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CBH\u2019s program was five days long. Here are the highlights:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Startup Engagement<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One of our specialties at SVIC is bridging the gap between corporates and early stage enterprises. Although seemingly inherently opposed to one another, the two classes of business are in many ways a natural fit. Where corporations have the money and the client base startups crave, startups have the innovative ideas and tech-savvy personnel so often needed at big companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That characterization is something of a stereotype but it proved to hold true for CBH. That was why we introduced the company to Planet, a startup building and operating satellites to collect data and imagery on the Earth\u2019s landmass. The application of such technology to agriculture and the advantages it can bring to farmers were immediately clear to CBH, which was eager to adopt Planet\u2019s approach for a platform of its own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further learnings came at a meeting with Granular where CBH found out about how cloud computing and big data analytics can help growers better manage resources in order to increase yields and profits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

So far, so innovative. But the best, as they say, was yet to come. It wasn\u2019t until the fifth and final day of the tour that CBH met Blue River Technology, a startup which proved to be the most inspiring of all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The appeal was in the marriage of computer vision and artificial intelligence: Blue River Technology\u2019s smart machines not only independently spray crops with herbicides to eliminate weeds, they also analyze each plant in a field to determine exactly what chemicals are needed where and in what quantities. Using this approach the startup is hoping it can do some good for the world by tackling herbicide-resistant weeds, a growing challenge to agriculture globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/WS3JRydN9sQ\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately for CBH, Blue River Technology\u2019s work is currently focused on crops other than grain. But just the fact of seeing the pioneering work being done by the startup was enough to convince the Australian exporter once and for all that being more involved in the Silicon Valley scene is vital. The team realized that if CBH could be the one to discover the next revolutionary breakthrough in wheat and barley cultivation, the advantages to the business could be almost inconceivably large.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plug in and Play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since its visit with us to Silicon Valley, CBH has launched its own software platform and taken steps to significantly optimize its supply chain operations. Clearly, the company has fully taken to heart the need for innovation. No doubt it will soon be partnering with a growing list of startups and setting off on all manner of interesting ventures to discover the next big breakthrough in grain agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC we like to think we had a hand in driving all this activity.  We can\u2019t take all the credit of course, our function having been simply to help the CBH team understand not only the solutions technology offers today but also the answers it might be able to provide tomorrow, given the right investments. All we could do was offer a stimulus, with any further steps being CBH\u2019s to make, and make alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

Search

Latest

\n

Want to take a deep dive into the technological disruption sweeping through your own industry? SVIC has custom immersion programs tailored to every level of management and sector of the economy.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Click here to learn more.<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n","post_title":"TNT Reaps AgriTech Innovations from Silicon Valley Companies","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":760,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-04-17 15:00:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-04-17 22:00:00","post_content":"\n

Silicon Valley is undoubtedly a place where any company can find innovative, technology-driven solutions to its thorniest problems. That is just as true for enterprises from the agricultural sector as from anywhere else, although the tech mecca has traditionally not been associated with breakthroughs in farming in the same way it has for many other industries; transport (Uber, Tesla), travel (Airbnb) and e-commerce (Amazon, eBay) being perhaps among the most notable examples.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet for CBH<\/a>, Australia\u2019s biggest exporter of grain, a trip to Silicon Valley turned out to be hugely worthwhile. The organization had approached us at the Silicon Valley Innovation Center on the back of a positive recommendation from compatriots at Bank of Queensland (the financial institution took one of our tours not long ago). That was something which generated a certain amount of expectation on the client side and, therefore, a greater-than-usual amount of pressure on us to deliver.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We were, of course, unfazed by this. That said, the recent explosion of interest in bitcoin and the general rise in awareness globally of the influence of FinTech as an offshoot of the financial services sector meant that when it came to Bank of Queensland\u2019s tour, we were able to take for granted that the company\u2019s executives already had a reasonable understanding of what they were getting themselves into before they set foot in Northern California.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With CBH, however, we could not make any such assumptions. Unlike FinTech and its rising superstars (see Stripe and Coinbase<\/a>, among others) the world of AgriTech is somewhat more obscure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/zWnWL-wEJgs\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What the team from Australia certainly did know was where it was falling short; namely, a lack of collaboration with the startup ecosystem, a supply chain in need of digitization and a dearth of high-tech solutions to offer its clients, the majority of whom are farmers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC, we took our usual course of action: we studied the list of CBH\u2019s problems or \u201cpain points\u201d as we like to call them, and custom-designed a tour of Silicon Valley. The goal was to connect the grain exporter with some of AgriTech\u2019s hottest startups and introduce it to the core principles of corporate innovative as they are being practiced today by leading companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CBH\u2019s program was five days long. Here are the highlights:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Startup Engagement<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One of our specialties at SVIC is bridging the gap between corporates and early stage enterprises. Although seemingly inherently opposed to one another, the two classes of business are in many ways a natural fit. Where corporations have the money and the client base startups crave, startups have the innovative ideas and tech-savvy personnel so often needed at big companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That characterization is something of a stereotype but it proved to hold true for CBH. That was why we introduced the company to Planet, a startup building and operating satellites to collect data and imagery on the Earth\u2019s landmass. The application of such technology to agriculture and the advantages it can bring to farmers were immediately clear to CBH, which was eager to adopt Planet\u2019s approach for a platform of its own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further learnings came at a meeting with Granular where CBH found out about how cloud computing and big data analytics can help growers better manage resources in order to increase yields and profits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

So far, so innovative. But the best, as they say, was yet to come. It wasn\u2019t until the fifth and final day of the tour that CBH met Blue River Technology, a startup which proved to be the most inspiring of all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The appeal was in the marriage of computer vision and artificial intelligence: Blue River Technology\u2019s smart machines not only independently spray crops with herbicides to eliminate weeds, they also analyze each plant in a field to determine exactly what chemicals are needed where and in what quantities. Using this approach the startup is hoping it can do some good for the world by tackling herbicide-resistant weeds, a growing challenge to agriculture globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/WS3JRydN9sQ\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately for CBH, Blue River Technology\u2019s work is currently focused on crops other than grain. But just the fact of seeing the pioneering work being done by the startup was enough to convince the Australian exporter once and for all that being more involved in the Silicon Valley scene is vital. The team realized that if CBH could be the one to discover the next revolutionary breakthrough in wheat and barley cultivation, the advantages to the business could be almost inconceivably large.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plug in and Play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since its visit with us to Silicon Valley, CBH has launched its own software platform and taken steps to significantly optimize its supply chain operations. Clearly, the company has fully taken to heart the need for innovation. No doubt it will soon be partnering with a growing list of startups and setting off on all manner of interesting ventures to discover the next big breakthrough in grain agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC we like to think we had a hand in driving all this activity.  We can\u2019t take all the credit of course, our function having been simply to help the CBH team understand not only the solutions technology offers today but also the answers it might be able to provide tomorrow, given the right investments. All we could do was offer a stimulus, with any further steps being CBH\u2019s to make, and make alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

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\n

TNT, sensing these changes on the horizon of the agriculture industry, came to SVIC thrice over to understand the new technologies redefining their business. By meeting with the startups and technology companies leading the way in AgriTech, TNT took home valuable insight into how to grow their business for the future \u2014 as well as potential partnerships in TerrAvion and Ceres Imaging. For TNT, the field of AgriTech is ripe for the picking. They\u2019re ready to harvest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Want to take a deep dive into the technological disruption sweeping through your own industry? SVIC has custom immersion programs tailored to every level of management and sector of the economy.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Click here to learn more.<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n","post_title":"TNT Reaps AgriTech Innovations from Silicon Valley Companies","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":760,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-04-17 15:00:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-04-17 22:00:00","post_content":"\n

Silicon Valley is undoubtedly a place where any company can find innovative, technology-driven solutions to its thorniest problems. That is just as true for enterprises from the agricultural sector as from anywhere else, although the tech mecca has traditionally not been associated with breakthroughs in farming in the same way it has for many other industries; transport (Uber, Tesla), travel (Airbnb) and e-commerce (Amazon, eBay) being perhaps among the most notable examples.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet for CBH<\/a>, Australia\u2019s biggest exporter of grain, a trip to Silicon Valley turned out to be hugely worthwhile. The organization had approached us at the Silicon Valley Innovation Center on the back of a positive recommendation from compatriots at Bank of Queensland (the financial institution took one of our tours not long ago). That was something which generated a certain amount of expectation on the client side and, therefore, a greater-than-usual amount of pressure on us to deliver.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We were, of course, unfazed by this. That said, the recent explosion of interest in bitcoin and the general rise in awareness globally of the influence of FinTech as an offshoot of the financial services sector meant that when it came to Bank of Queensland\u2019s tour, we were able to take for granted that the company\u2019s executives already had a reasonable understanding of what they were getting themselves into before they set foot in Northern California.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With CBH, however, we could not make any such assumptions. Unlike FinTech and its rising superstars (see Stripe and Coinbase<\/a>, among others) the world of AgriTech is somewhat more obscure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/zWnWL-wEJgs\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What the team from Australia certainly did know was where it was falling short; namely, a lack of collaboration with the startup ecosystem, a supply chain in need of digitization and a dearth of high-tech solutions to offer its clients, the majority of whom are farmers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC, we took our usual course of action: we studied the list of CBH\u2019s problems or \u201cpain points\u201d as we like to call them, and custom-designed a tour of Silicon Valley. The goal was to connect the grain exporter with some of AgriTech\u2019s hottest startups and introduce it to the core principles of corporate innovative as they are being practiced today by leading companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CBH\u2019s program was five days long. Here are the highlights:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Startup Engagement<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One of our specialties at SVIC is bridging the gap between corporates and early stage enterprises. Although seemingly inherently opposed to one another, the two classes of business are in many ways a natural fit. Where corporations have the money and the client base startups crave, startups have the innovative ideas and tech-savvy personnel so often needed at big companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That characterization is something of a stereotype but it proved to hold true for CBH. That was why we introduced the company to Planet, a startup building and operating satellites to collect data and imagery on the Earth\u2019s landmass. The application of such technology to agriculture and the advantages it can bring to farmers were immediately clear to CBH, which was eager to adopt Planet\u2019s approach for a platform of its own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further learnings came at a meeting with Granular where CBH found out about how cloud computing and big data analytics can help growers better manage resources in order to increase yields and profits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

So far, so innovative. But the best, as they say, was yet to come. It wasn\u2019t until the fifth and final day of the tour that CBH met Blue River Technology, a startup which proved to be the most inspiring of all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The appeal was in the marriage of computer vision and artificial intelligence: Blue River Technology\u2019s smart machines not only independently spray crops with herbicides to eliminate weeds, they also analyze each plant in a field to determine exactly what chemicals are needed where and in what quantities. Using this approach the startup is hoping it can do some good for the world by tackling herbicide-resistant weeds, a growing challenge to agriculture globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/WS3JRydN9sQ\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately for CBH, Blue River Technology\u2019s work is currently focused on crops other than grain. But just the fact of seeing the pioneering work being done by the startup was enough to convince the Australian exporter once and for all that being more involved in the Silicon Valley scene is vital. The team realized that if CBH could be the one to discover the next revolutionary breakthrough in wheat and barley cultivation, the advantages to the business could be almost inconceivably large.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plug in and Play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since its visit with us to Silicon Valley, CBH has launched its own software platform and taken steps to significantly optimize its supply chain operations. Clearly, the company has fully taken to heart the need for innovation. No doubt it will soon be partnering with a growing list of startups and setting off on all manner of interesting ventures to discover the next big breakthrough in grain agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC we like to think we had a hand in driving all this activity.  We can\u2019t take all the credit of course, our function having been simply to help the CBH team understand not only the solutions technology offers today but also the answers it might be able to provide tomorrow, given the right investments. All we could do was offer a stimulus, with any further steps being CBH\u2019s to make, and make alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

Search

Latest

\n

The emerging field of AgriTech is only the latest in a long line of traditional industries being disrupted by new technologies. As computer processing power continues to increase alongside the capability of artificial intelligence, it\u2019s inevitable that the resulting technologies \u2014 autonomous machinery, remote sensor subscription services, general-purpose data aggregation and analysis platforms \u2014 begin to take root in businesses everywhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TNT, sensing these changes on the horizon of the agriculture industry, came to SVIC thrice over to understand the new technologies redefining their business. By meeting with the startups and technology companies leading the way in AgriTech, TNT took home valuable insight into how to grow their business for the future \u2014 as well as potential partnerships in TerrAvion and Ceres Imaging. For TNT, the field of AgriTech is ripe for the picking. They\u2019re ready to harvest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Want to take a deep dive into the technological disruption sweeping through your own industry? SVIC has custom immersion programs tailored to every level of management and sector of the economy.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Click here to learn more.<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n","post_title":"TNT Reaps AgriTech Innovations from Silicon Valley Companies","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":760,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-04-17 15:00:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-04-17 22:00:00","post_content":"\n

Silicon Valley is undoubtedly a place where any company can find innovative, technology-driven solutions to its thorniest problems. That is just as true for enterprises from the agricultural sector as from anywhere else, although the tech mecca has traditionally not been associated with breakthroughs in farming in the same way it has for many other industries; transport (Uber, Tesla), travel (Airbnb) and e-commerce (Amazon, eBay) being perhaps among the most notable examples.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet for CBH<\/a>, Australia\u2019s biggest exporter of grain, a trip to Silicon Valley turned out to be hugely worthwhile. The organization had approached us at the Silicon Valley Innovation Center on the back of a positive recommendation from compatriots at Bank of Queensland (the financial institution took one of our tours not long ago). That was something which generated a certain amount of expectation on the client side and, therefore, a greater-than-usual amount of pressure on us to deliver.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We were, of course, unfazed by this. That said, the recent explosion of interest in bitcoin and the general rise in awareness globally of the influence of FinTech as an offshoot of the financial services sector meant that when it came to Bank of Queensland\u2019s tour, we were able to take for granted that the company\u2019s executives already had a reasonable understanding of what they were getting themselves into before they set foot in Northern California.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With CBH, however, we could not make any such assumptions. Unlike FinTech and its rising superstars (see Stripe and Coinbase<\/a>, among others) the world of AgriTech is somewhat more obscure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/zWnWL-wEJgs\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What the team from Australia certainly did know was where it was falling short; namely, a lack of collaboration with the startup ecosystem, a supply chain in need of digitization and a dearth of high-tech solutions to offer its clients, the majority of whom are farmers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC, we took our usual course of action: we studied the list of CBH\u2019s problems or \u201cpain points\u201d as we like to call them, and custom-designed a tour of Silicon Valley. The goal was to connect the grain exporter with some of AgriTech\u2019s hottest startups and introduce it to the core principles of corporate innovative as they are being practiced today by leading companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CBH\u2019s program was five days long. Here are the highlights:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Startup Engagement<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One of our specialties at SVIC is bridging the gap between corporates and early stage enterprises. Although seemingly inherently opposed to one another, the two classes of business are in many ways a natural fit. Where corporations have the money and the client base startups crave, startups have the innovative ideas and tech-savvy personnel so often needed at big companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That characterization is something of a stereotype but it proved to hold true for CBH. That was why we introduced the company to Planet, a startup building and operating satellites to collect data and imagery on the Earth\u2019s landmass. The application of such technology to agriculture and the advantages it can bring to farmers were immediately clear to CBH, which was eager to adopt Planet\u2019s approach for a platform of its own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further learnings came at a meeting with Granular where CBH found out about how cloud computing and big data analytics can help growers better manage resources in order to increase yields and profits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

So far, so innovative. But the best, as they say, was yet to come. It wasn\u2019t until the fifth and final day of the tour that CBH met Blue River Technology, a startup which proved to be the most inspiring of all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The appeal was in the marriage of computer vision and artificial intelligence: Blue River Technology\u2019s smart machines not only independently spray crops with herbicides to eliminate weeds, they also analyze each plant in a field to determine exactly what chemicals are needed where and in what quantities. Using this approach the startup is hoping it can do some good for the world by tackling herbicide-resistant weeds, a growing challenge to agriculture globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/WS3JRydN9sQ\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately for CBH, Blue River Technology\u2019s work is currently focused on crops other than grain. But just the fact of seeing the pioneering work being done by the startup was enough to convince the Australian exporter once and for all that being more involved in the Silicon Valley scene is vital. The team realized that if CBH could be the one to discover the next revolutionary breakthrough in wheat and barley cultivation, the advantages to the business could be almost inconceivably large.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plug in and Play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since its visit with us to Silicon Valley, CBH has launched its own software platform and taken steps to significantly optimize its supply chain operations. Clearly, the company has fully taken to heart the need for innovation. No doubt it will soon be partnering with a growing list of startups and setting off on all manner of interesting ventures to discover the next big breakthrough in grain agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC we like to think we had a hand in driving all this activity.  We can\u2019t take all the credit of course, our function having been simply to help the CBH team understand not only the solutions technology offers today but also the answers it might be able to provide tomorrow, given the right investments. All we could do was offer a stimulus, with any further steps being CBH\u2019s to make, and make alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

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Latest

\n

Sunny Skies and Fertile Soils for TNT and AgriTech<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The emerging field of AgriTech is only the latest in a long line of traditional industries being disrupted by new technologies. As computer processing power continues to increase alongside the capability of artificial intelligence, it\u2019s inevitable that the resulting technologies \u2014 autonomous machinery, remote sensor subscription services, general-purpose data aggregation and analysis platforms \u2014 begin to take root in businesses everywhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TNT, sensing these changes on the horizon of the agriculture industry, came to SVIC thrice over to understand the new technologies redefining their business. By meeting with the startups and technology companies leading the way in AgriTech, TNT took home valuable insight into how to grow their business for the future \u2014 as well as potential partnerships in TerrAvion and Ceres Imaging. For TNT, the field of AgriTech is ripe for the picking. They\u2019re ready to harvest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Want to take a deep dive into the technological disruption sweeping through your own industry? SVIC has custom immersion programs tailored to every level of management and sector of the economy.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Click here to learn more.<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n","post_title":"TNT Reaps AgriTech Innovations from Silicon Valley Companies","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":760,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-04-17 15:00:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-04-17 22:00:00","post_content":"\n

Silicon Valley is undoubtedly a place where any company can find innovative, technology-driven solutions to its thorniest problems. That is just as true for enterprises from the agricultural sector as from anywhere else, although the tech mecca has traditionally not been associated with breakthroughs in farming in the same way it has for many other industries; transport (Uber, Tesla), travel (Airbnb) and e-commerce (Amazon, eBay) being perhaps among the most notable examples.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet for CBH<\/a>, Australia\u2019s biggest exporter of grain, a trip to Silicon Valley turned out to be hugely worthwhile. The organization had approached us at the Silicon Valley Innovation Center on the back of a positive recommendation from compatriots at Bank of Queensland (the financial institution took one of our tours not long ago). That was something which generated a certain amount of expectation on the client side and, therefore, a greater-than-usual amount of pressure on us to deliver.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We were, of course, unfazed by this. That said, the recent explosion of interest in bitcoin and the general rise in awareness globally of the influence of FinTech as an offshoot of the financial services sector meant that when it came to Bank of Queensland\u2019s tour, we were able to take for granted that the company\u2019s executives already had a reasonable understanding of what they were getting themselves into before they set foot in Northern California.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With CBH, however, we could not make any such assumptions. Unlike FinTech and its rising superstars (see Stripe and Coinbase<\/a>, among others) the world of AgriTech is somewhat more obscure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/zWnWL-wEJgs\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What the team from Australia certainly did know was where it was falling short; namely, a lack of collaboration with the startup ecosystem, a supply chain in need of digitization and a dearth of high-tech solutions to offer its clients, the majority of whom are farmers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC, we took our usual course of action: we studied the list of CBH\u2019s problems or \u201cpain points\u201d as we like to call them, and custom-designed a tour of Silicon Valley. The goal was to connect the grain exporter with some of AgriTech\u2019s hottest startups and introduce it to the core principles of corporate innovative as they are being practiced today by leading companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CBH\u2019s program was five days long. Here are the highlights:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Startup Engagement<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One of our specialties at SVIC is bridging the gap between corporates and early stage enterprises. Although seemingly inherently opposed to one another, the two classes of business are in many ways a natural fit. Where corporations have the money and the client base startups crave, startups have the innovative ideas and tech-savvy personnel so often needed at big companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That characterization is something of a stereotype but it proved to hold true for CBH. That was why we introduced the company to Planet, a startup building and operating satellites to collect data and imagery on the Earth\u2019s landmass. The application of such technology to agriculture and the advantages it can bring to farmers were immediately clear to CBH, which was eager to adopt Planet\u2019s approach for a platform of its own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further learnings came at a meeting with Granular where CBH found out about how cloud computing and big data analytics can help growers better manage resources in order to increase yields and profits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

So far, so innovative. But the best, as they say, was yet to come. It wasn\u2019t until the fifth and final day of the tour that CBH met Blue River Technology, a startup which proved to be the most inspiring of all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The appeal was in the marriage of computer vision and artificial intelligence: Blue River Technology\u2019s smart machines not only independently spray crops with herbicides to eliminate weeds, they also analyze each plant in a field to determine exactly what chemicals are needed where and in what quantities. Using this approach the startup is hoping it can do some good for the world by tackling herbicide-resistant weeds, a growing challenge to agriculture globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/WS3JRydN9sQ\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately for CBH, Blue River Technology\u2019s work is currently focused on crops other than grain. But just the fact of seeing the pioneering work being done by the startup was enough to convince the Australian exporter once and for all that being more involved in the Silicon Valley scene is vital. The team realized that if CBH could be the one to discover the next revolutionary breakthrough in wheat and barley cultivation, the advantages to the business could be almost inconceivably large.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plug in and Play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since its visit with us to Silicon Valley, CBH has launched its own software platform and taken steps to significantly optimize its supply chain operations. Clearly, the company has fully taken to heart the need for innovation. No doubt it will soon be partnering with a growing list of startups and setting off on all manner of interesting ventures to discover the next big breakthrough in grain agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC we like to think we had a hand in driving all this activity.  We can\u2019t take all the credit of course, our function having been simply to help the CBH team understand not only the solutions technology offers today but also the answers it might be able to provide tomorrow, given the right investments. All we could do was offer a stimulus, with any further steps being CBH\u2019s to make, and make alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

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Latest

\n

Executives from TNT listen in during a presentation from TerrAvion, the largest provider in the United States of aerial imagery as a service for agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sunny Skies and Fertile Soils for TNT and AgriTech<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The emerging field of AgriTech is only the latest in a long line of traditional industries being disrupted by new technologies. As computer processing power continues to increase alongside the capability of artificial intelligence, it\u2019s inevitable that the resulting technologies \u2014 autonomous machinery, remote sensor subscription services, general-purpose data aggregation and analysis platforms \u2014 begin to take root in businesses everywhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TNT, sensing these changes on the horizon of the agriculture industry, came to SVIC thrice over to understand the new technologies redefining their business. By meeting with the startups and technology companies leading the way in AgriTech, TNT took home valuable insight into how to grow their business for the future \u2014 as well as potential partnerships in TerrAvion and Ceres Imaging. For TNT, the field of AgriTech is ripe for the picking. They\u2019re ready to harvest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Want to take a deep dive into the technological disruption sweeping through your own industry? SVIC has custom immersion programs tailored to every level of management and sector of the economy.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Click here to learn more.<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n","post_title":"TNT Reaps AgriTech Innovations from Silicon Valley Companies","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":760,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-04-17 15:00:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-04-17 22:00:00","post_content":"\n

Silicon Valley is undoubtedly a place where any company can find innovative, technology-driven solutions to its thorniest problems. That is just as true for enterprises from the agricultural sector as from anywhere else, although the tech mecca has traditionally not been associated with breakthroughs in farming in the same way it has for many other industries; transport (Uber, Tesla), travel (Airbnb) and e-commerce (Amazon, eBay) being perhaps among the most notable examples.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet for CBH<\/a>, Australia\u2019s biggest exporter of grain, a trip to Silicon Valley turned out to be hugely worthwhile. The organization had approached us at the Silicon Valley Innovation Center on the back of a positive recommendation from compatriots at Bank of Queensland (the financial institution took one of our tours not long ago). That was something which generated a certain amount of expectation on the client side and, therefore, a greater-than-usual amount of pressure on us to deliver.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We were, of course, unfazed by this. That said, the recent explosion of interest in bitcoin and the general rise in awareness globally of the influence of FinTech as an offshoot of the financial services sector meant that when it came to Bank of Queensland\u2019s tour, we were able to take for granted that the company\u2019s executives already had a reasonable understanding of what they were getting themselves into before they set foot in Northern California.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With CBH, however, we could not make any such assumptions. Unlike FinTech and its rising superstars (see Stripe and Coinbase<\/a>, among others) the world of AgriTech is somewhat more obscure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/zWnWL-wEJgs\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What the team from Australia certainly did know was where it was falling short; namely, a lack of collaboration with the startup ecosystem, a supply chain in need of digitization and a dearth of high-tech solutions to offer its clients, the majority of whom are farmers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC, we took our usual course of action: we studied the list of CBH\u2019s problems or \u201cpain points\u201d as we like to call them, and custom-designed a tour of Silicon Valley. The goal was to connect the grain exporter with some of AgriTech\u2019s hottest startups and introduce it to the core principles of corporate innovative as they are being practiced today by leading companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CBH\u2019s program was five days long. Here are the highlights:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Startup Engagement<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One of our specialties at SVIC is bridging the gap between corporates and early stage enterprises. Although seemingly inherently opposed to one another, the two classes of business are in many ways a natural fit. Where corporations have the money and the client base startups crave, startups have the innovative ideas and tech-savvy personnel so often needed at big companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That characterization is something of a stereotype but it proved to hold true for CBH. That was why we introduced the company to Planet, a startup building and operating satellites to collect data and imagery on the Earth\u2019s landmass. The application of such technology to agriculture and the advantages it can bring to farmers were immediately clear to CBH, which was eager to adopt Planet\u2019s approach for a platform of its own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further learnings came at a meeting with Granular where CBH found out about how cloud computing and big data analytics can help growers better manage resources in order to increase yields and profits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

So far, so innovative. But the best, as they say, was yet to come. It wasn\u2019t until the fifth and final day of the tour that CBH met Blue River Technology, a startup which proved to be the most inspiring of all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The appeal was in the marriage of computer vision and artificial intelligence: Blue River Technology\u2019s smart machines not only independently spray crops with herbicides to eliminate weeds, they also analyze each plant in a field to determine exactly what chemicals are needed where and in what quantities. Using this approach the startup is hoping it can do some good for the world by tackling herbicide-resistant weeds, a growing challenge to agriculture globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/WS3JRydN9sQ\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately for CBH, Blue River Technology\u2019s work is currently focused on crops other than grain. But just the fact of seeing the pioneering work being done by the startup was enough to convince the Australian exporter once and for all that being more involved in the Silicon Valley scene is vital. The team realized that if CBH could be the one to discover the next revolutionary breakthrough in wheat and barley cultivation, the advantages to the business could be almost inconceivably large.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plug in and Play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since its visit with us to Silicon Valley, CBH has launched its own software platform and taken steps to significantly optimize its supply chain operations. Clearly, the company has fully taken to heart the need for innovation. No doubt it will soon be partnering with a growing list of startups and setting off on all manner of interesting ventures to discover the next big breakthrough in grain agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC we like to think we had a hand in driving all this activity.  We can\u2019t take all the credit of course, our function having been simply to help the CBH team understand not only the solutions technology offers today but also the answers it might be able to provide tomorrow, given the right investments. All we could do was offer a stimulus, with any further steps being CBH\u2019s to make, and make alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

Search

Latest

\n
\"Companies<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Executives from TNT listen in during a presentation from TerrAvion, the largest provider in the United States of aerial imagery as a service for agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sunny Skies and Fertile Soils for TNT and AgriTech<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The emerging field of AgriTech is only the latest in a long line of traditional industries being disrupted by new technologies. As computer processing power continues to increase alongside the capability of artificial intelligence, it\u2019s inevitable that the resulting technologies \u2014 autonomous machinery, remote sensor subscription services, general-purpose data aggregation and analysis platforms \u2014 begin to take root in businesses everywhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TNT, sensing these changes on the horizon of the agriculture industry, came to SVIC thrice over to understand the new technologies redefining their business. By meeting with the startups and technology companies leading the way in AgriTech, TNT took home valuable insight into how to grow their business for the future \u2014 as well as potential partnerships in TerrAvion and Ceres Imaging. For TNT, the field of AgriTech is ripe for the picking. They\u2019re ready to harvest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Want to take a deep dive into the technological disruption sweeping through your own industry? SVIC has custom immersion programs tailored to every level of management and sector of the economy.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Click here to learn more.<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n","post_title":"TNT Reaps AgriTech Innovations from Silicon Valley Companies","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":760,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-04-17 15:00:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-04-17 22:00:00","post_content":"\n

Silicon Valley is undoubtedly a place where any company can find innovative, technology-driven solutions to its thorniest problems. That is just as true for enterprises from the agricultural sector as from anywhere else, although the tech mecca has traditionally not been associated with breakthroughs in farming in the same way it has for many other industries; transport (Uber, Tesla), travel (Airbnb) and e-commerce (Amazon, eBay) being perhaps among the most notable examples.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet for CBH<\/a>, Australia\u2019s biggest exporter of grain, a trip to Silicon Valley turned out to be hugely worthwhile. The organization had approached us at the Silicon Valley Innovation Center on the back of a positive recommendation from compatriots at Bank of Queensland (the financial institution took one of our tours not long ago). That was something which generated a certain amount of expectation on the client side and, therefore, a greater-than-usual amount of pressure on us to deliver.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We were, of course, unfazed by this. That said, the recent explosion of interest in bitcoin and the general rise in awareness globally of the influence of FinTech as an offshoot of the financial services sector meant that when it came to Bank of Queensland\u2019s tour, we were able to take for granted that the company\u2019s executives already had a reasonable understanding of what they were getting themselves into before they set foot in Northern California.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With CBH, however, we could not make any such assumptions. Unlike FinTech and its rising superstars (see Stripe and Coinbase<\/a>, among others) the world of AgriTech is somewhat more obscure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/zWnWL-wEJgs\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What the team from Australia certainly did know was where it was falling short; namely, a lack of collaboration with the startup ecosystem, a supply chain in need of digitization and a dearth of high-tech solutions to offer its clients, the majority of whom are farmers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC, we took our usual course of action: we studied the list of CBH\u2019s problems or \u201cpain points\u201d as we like to call them, and custom-designed a tour of Silicon Valley. The goal was to connect the grain exporter with some of AgriTech\u2019s hottest startups and introduce it to the core principles of corporate innovative as they are being practiced today by leading companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CBH\u2019s program was five days long. Here are the highlights:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Startup Engagement<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One of our specialties at SVIC is bridging the gap between corporates and early stage enterprises. Although seemingly inherently opposed to one another, the two classes of business are in many ways a natural fit. Where corporations have the money and the client base startups crave, startups have the innovative ideas and tech-savvy personnel so often needed at big companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That characterization is something of a stereotype but it proved to hold true for CBH. That was why we introduced the company to Planet, a startup building and operating satellites to collect data and imagery on the Earth\u2019s landmass. The application of such technology to agriculture and the advantages it can bring to farmers were immediately clear to CBH, which was eager to adopt Planet\u2019s approach for a platform of its own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further learnings came at a meeting with Granular where CBH found out about how cloud computing and big data analytics can help growers better manage resources in order to increase yields and profits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

So far, so innovative. But the best, as they say, was yet to come. It wasn\u2019t until the fifth and final day of the tour that CBH met Blue River Technology, a startup which proved to be the most inspiring of all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The appeal was in the marriage of computer vision and artificial intelligence: Blue River Technology\u2019s smart machines not only independently spray crops with herbicides to eliminate weeds, they also analyze each plant in a field to determine exactly what chemicals are needed where and in what quantities. Using this approach the startup is hoping it can do some good for the world by tackling herbicide-resistant weeds, a growing challenge to agriculture globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/WS3JRydN9sQ\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately for CBH, Blue River Technology\u2019s work is currently focused on crops other than grain. But just the fact of seeing the pioneering work being done by the startup was enough to convince the Australian exporter once and for all that being more involved in the Silicon Valley scene is vital. The team realized that if CBH could be the one to discover the next revolutionary breakthrough in wheat and barley cultivation, the advantages to the business could be almost inconceivably large.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plug in and Play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since its visit with us to Silicon Valley, CBH has launched its own software platform and taken steps to significantly optimize its supply chain operations. Clearly, the company has fully taken to heart the need for innovation. No doubt it will soon be partnering with a growing list of startups and setting off on all manner of interesting ventures to discover the next big breakthrough in grain agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC we like to think we had a hand in driving all this activity.  We can\u2019t take all the credit of course, our function having been simply to help the CBH team understand not only the solutions technology offers today but also the answers it might be able to provide tomorrow, given the right investments. All we could do was offer a stimulus, with any further steps being CBH\u2019s to make, and make alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

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Latest

\n

Key takeaway from Figure Eight and Farmers Business Network:<\/strong> in AgriTech as in other technologically disrupted industries, the aggregation and machine analysis of data is key to unlocking operational efficiencies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Companies<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Executives from TNT listen in during a presentation from TerrAvion, the largest provider in the United States of aerial imagery as a service for agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sunny Skies and Fertile Soils for TNT and AgriTech<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The emerging field of AgriTech is only the latest in a long line of traditional industries being disrupted by new technologies. As computer processing power continues to increase alongside the capability of artificial intelligence, it\u2019s inevitable that the resulting technologies \u2014 autonomous machinery, remote sensor subscription services, general-purpose data aggregation and analysis platforms \u2014 begin to take root in businesses everywhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TNT, sensing these changes on the horizon of the agriculture industry, came to SVIC thrice over to understand the new technologies redefining their business. By meeting with the startups and technology companies leading the way in AgriTech, TNT took home valuable insight into how to grow their business for the future \u2014 as well as potential partnerships in TerrAvion and Ceres Imaging. For TNT, the field of AgriTech is ripe for the picking. They\u2019re ready to harvest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Want to take a deep dive into the technological disruption sweeping through your own industry? SVIC has custom immersion programs tailored to every level of management and sector of the economy.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Click here to learn more.<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n","post_title":"TNT Reaps AgriTech Innovations from Silicon Valley Companies","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":760,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-04-17 15:00:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-04-17 22:00:00","post_content":"\n

Silicon Valley is undoubtedly a place where any company can find innovative, technology-driven solutions to its thorniest problems. That is just as true for enterprises from the agricultural sector as from anywhere else, although the tech mecca has traditionally not been associated with breakthroughs in farming in the same way it has for many other industries; transport (Uber, Tesla), travel (Airbnb) and e-commerce (Amazon, eBay) being perhaps among the most notable examples.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet for CBH<\/a>, Australia\u2019s biggest exporter of grain, a trip to Silicon Valley turned out to be hugely worthwhile. The organization had approached us at the Silicon Valley Innovation Center on the back of a positive recommendation from compatriots at Bank of Queensland (the financial institution took one of our tours not long ago). That was something which generated a certain amount of expectation on the client side and, therefore, a greater-than-usual amount of pressure on us to deliver.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We were, of course, unfazed by this. That said, the recent explosion of interest in bitcoin and the general rise in awareness globally of the influence of FinTech as an offshoot of the financial services sector meant that when it came to Bank of Queensland\u2019s tour, we were able to take for granted that the company\u2019s executives already had a reasonable understanding of what they were getting themselves into before they set foot in Northern California.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With CBH, however, we could not make any such assumptions. Unlike FinTech and its rising superstars (see Stripe and Coinbase<\/a>, among others) the world of AgriTech is somewhat more obscure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/zWnWL-wEJgs\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What the team from Australia certainly did know was where it was falling short; namely, a lack of collaboration with the startup ecosystem, a supply chain in need of digitization and a dearth of high-tech solutions to offer its clients, the majority of whom are farmers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC, we took our usual course of action: we studied the list of CBH\u2019s problems or \u201cpain points\u201d as we like to call them, and custom-designed a tour of Silicon Valley. The goal was to connect the grain exporter with some of AgriTech\u2019s hottest startups and introduce it to the core principles of corporate innovative as they are being practiced today by leading companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CBH\u2019s program was five days long. Here are the highlights:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Startup Engagement<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One of our specialties at SVIC is bridging the gap between corporates and early stage enterprises. Although seemingly inherently opposed to one another, the two classes of business are in many ways a natural fit. Where corporations have the money and the client base startups crave, startups have the innovative ideas and tech-savvy personnel so often needed at big companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That characterization is something of a stereotype but it proved to hold true for CBH. That was why we introduced the company to Planet, a startup building and operating satellites to collect data and imagery on the Earth\u2019s landmass. The application of such technology to agriculture and the advantages it can bring to farmers were immediately clear to CBH, which was eager to adopt Planet\u2019s approach for a platform of its own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further learnings came at a meeting with Granular where CBH found out about how cloud computing and big data analytics can help growers better manage resources in order to increase yields and profits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

So far, so innovative. But the best, as they say, was yet to come. It wasn\u2019t until the fifth and final day of the tour that CBH met Blue River Technology, a startup which proved to be the most inspiring of all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The appeal was in the marriage of computer vision and artificial intelligence: Blue River Technology\u2019s smart machines not only independently spray crops with herbicides to eliminate weeds, they also analyze each plant in a field to determine exactly what chemicals are needed where and in what quantities. Using this approach the startup is hoping it can do some good for the world by tackling herbicide-resistant weeds, a growing challenge to agriculture globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/WS3JRydN9sQ\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately for CBH, Blue River Technology\u2019s work is currently focused on crops other than grain. But just the fact of seeing the pioneering work being done by the startup was enough to convince the Australian exporter once and for all that being more involved in the Silicon Valley scene is vital. The team realized that if CBH could be the one to discover the next revolutionary breakthrough in wheat and barley cultivation, the advantages to the business could be almost inconceivably large.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plug in and Play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since its visit with us to Silicon Valley, CBH has launched its own software platform and taken steps to significantly optimize its supply chain operations. Clearly, the company has fully taken to heart the need for innovation. No doubt it will soon be partnering with a growing list of startups and setting off on all manner of interesting ventures to discover the next big breakthrough in grain agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC we like to think we had a hand in driving all this activity.  We can\u2019t take all the credit of course, our function having been simply to help the CBH team understand not only the solutions technology offers today but also the answers it might be able to provide tomorrow, given the right investments. All we could do was offer a stimulus, with any further steps being CBH\u2019s to make, and make alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

Search

Latest

\n

TNT saw the power of aggregated data firsthand at the headquarters of Farmers Business Network (FBN). FBN is an independent network of thousands of farmers who, by anonymously sharing their agronomic precision data, can unlock the analytical insight provided by over 8 million acres of American farmland. FBN\u2019s platform utilizes data science, machine learning, and billions of data points to democratically share objective, unbiased information throughout its network. This aggregated data helps farmers better understand their seed quality, soil fertility, crop values, and more. Though FBN hasn\u2019t yet extended to Brazil, its democratic aggregation model knows no geographical boundaries \u2014 and the TNT groups were curious about setting up similar programs and services in their own country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Key takeaway from Figure Eight and Farmers Business Network:<\/strong> in AgriTech as in other technologically disrupted industries, the aggregation and machine analysis of data is key to unlocking operational efficiencies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Companies<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Executives from TNT listen in during a presentation from TerrAvion, the largest provider in the United States of aerial imagery as a service for agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sunny Skies and Fertile Soils for TNT and AgriTech<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The emerging field of AgriTech is only the latest in a long line of traditional industries being disrupted by new technologies. As computer processing power continues to increase alongside the capability of artificial intelligence, it\u2019s inevitable that the resulting technologies \u2014 autonomous machinery, remote sensor subscription services, general-purpose data aggregation and analysis platforms \u2014 begin to take root in businesses everywhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TNT, sensing these changes on the horizon of the agriculture industry, came to SVIC thrice over to understand the new technologies redefining their business. By meeting with the startups and technology companies leading the way in AgriTech, TNT took home valuable insight into how to grow their business for the future \u2014 as well as potential partnerships in TerrAvion and Ceres Imaging. For TNT, the field of AgriTech is ripe for the picking. They\u2019re ready to harvest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Want to take a deep dive into the technological disruption sweeping through your own industry? SVIC has custom immersion programs tailored to every level of management and sector of the economy.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Click here to learn more.<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n","post_title":"TNT Reaps AgriTech Innovations from Silicon Valley Companies","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":760,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-04-17 15:00:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-04-17 22:00:00","post_content":"\n

Silicon Valley is undoubtedly a place where any company can find innovative, technology-driven solutions to its thorniest problems. That is just as true for enterprises from the agricultural sector as from anywhere else, although the tech mecca has traditionally not been associated with breakthroughs in farming in the same way it has for many other industries; transport (Uber, Tesla), travel (Airbnb) and e-commerce (Amazon, eBay) being perhaps among the most notable examples.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet for CBH<\/a>, Australia\u2019s biggest exporter of grain, a trip to Silicon Valley turned out to be hugely worthwhile. The organization had approached us at the Silicon Valley Innovation Center on the back of a positive recommendation from compatriots at Bank of Queensland (the financial institution took one of our tours not long ago). That was something which generated a certain amount of expectation on the client side and, therefore, a greater-than-usual amount of pressure on us to deliver.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We were, of course, unfazed by this. That said, the recent explosion of interest in bitcoin and the general rise in awareness globally of the influence of FinTech as an offshoot of the financial services sector meant that when it came to Bank of Queensland\u2019s tour, we were able to take for granted that the company\u2019s executives already had a reasonable understanding of what they were getting themselves into before they set foot in Northern California.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With CBH, however, we could not make any such assumptions. Unlike FinTech and its rising superstars (see Stripe and Coinbase<\/a>, among others) the world of AgriTech is somewhat more obscure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/zWnWL-wEJgs\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What the team from Australia certainly did know was where it was falling short; namely, a lack of collaboration with the startup ecosystem, a supply chain in need of digitization and a dearth of high-tech solutions to offer its clients, the majority of whom are farmers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC, we took our usual course of action: we studied the list of CBH\u2019s problems or \u201cpain points\u201d as we like to call them, and custom-designed a tour of Silicon Valley. The goal was to connect the grain exporter with some of AgriTech\u2019s hottest startups and introduce it to the core principles of corporate innovative as they are being practiced today by leading companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CBH\u2019s program was five days long. Here are the highlights:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Startup Engagement<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One of our specialties at SVIC is bridging the gap between corporates and early stage enterprises. Although seemingly inherently opposed to one another, the two classes of business are in many ways a natural fit. Where corporations have the money and the client base startups crave, startups have the innovative ideas and tech-savvy personnel so often needed at big companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That characterization is something of a stereotype but it proved to hold true for CBH. That was why we introduced the company to Planet, a startup building and operating satellites to collect data and imagery on the Earth\u2019s landmass. The application of such technology to agriculture and the advantages it can bring to farmers were immediately clear to CBH, which was eager to adopt Planet\u2019s approach for a platform of its own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further learnings came at a meeting with Granular where CBH found out about how cloud computing and big data analytics can help growers better manage resources in order to increase yields and profits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

So far, so innovative. But the best, as they say, was yet to come. It wasn\u2019t until the fifth and final day of the tour that CBH met Blue River Technology, a startup which proved to be the most inspiring of all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The appeal was in the marriage of computer vision and artificial intelligence: Blue River Technology\u2019s smart machines not only independently spray crops with herbicides to eliminate weeds, they also analyze each plant in a field to determine exactly what chemicals are needed where and in what quantities. Using this approach the startup is hoping it can do some good for the world by tackling herbicide-resistant weeds, a growing challenge to agriculture globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/WS3JRydN9sQ\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately for CBH, Blue River Technology\u2019s work is currently focused on crops other than grain. But just the fact of seeing the pioneering work being done by the startup was enough to convince the Australian exporter once and for all that being more involved in the Silicon Valley scene is vital. The team realized that if CBH could be the one to discover the next revolutionary breakthrough in wheat and barley cultivation, the advantages to the business could be almost inconceivably large.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plug in and Play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since its visit with us to Silicon Valley, CBH has launched its own software platform and taken steps to significantly optimize its supply chain operations. Clearly, the company has fully taken to heart the need for innovation. No doubt it will soon be partnering with a growing list of startups and setting off on all manner of interesting ventures to discover the next big breakthrough in grain agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC we like to think we had a hand in driving all this activity.  We can\u2019t take all the credit of course, our function having been simply to help the CBH team understand not only the solutions technology offers today but also the answers it might be able to provide tomorrow, given the right investments. All we could do was offer a stimulus, with any further steps being CBH\u2019s to make, and make alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

Search

Latest

\n

The TNT representatives saw this in action at Figure Eight, an enterprise-ready general purpose Machine Learning platform. An Account Executive at Figure Eight shared with the TNT groups the company\u2019s Human-in-the-Loop (HitL) model, which allows their employees to take any set of data \u2014 for example, months of aerial field imagery \u2014 and train a custom AI algorithm to process that data in a targeted way. That could mean automatically recognizing subtle problems in vegetation or almost anything else: tracking objects in videos, predicting maintenance for industrial machinery, categorizing products in eshops, creating intelligent chatbots, and so on ad infinitum. As the set of data grows \u2014 Figure Eight has already generated over 10 billion training labels \u2014 the power of machine learning for all their clients, in any context, grows with it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TNT saw the power of aggregated data firsthand at the headquarters of Farmers Business Network (FBN). FBN is an independent network of thousands of farmers who, by anonymously sharing their agronomic precision data, can unlock the analytical insight provided by over 8 million acres of American farmland. FBN\u2019s platform utilizes data science, machine learning, and billions of data points to democratically share objective, unbiased information throughout its network. This aggregated data helps farmers better understand their seed quality, soil fertility, crop values, and more. Though FBN hasn\u2019t yet extended to Brazil, its democratic aggregation model knows no geographical boundaries \u2014 and the TNT groups were curious about setting up similar programs and services in their own country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Key takeaway from Figure Eight and Farmers Business Network:<\/strong> in AgriTech as in other technologically disrupted industries, the aggregation and machine analysis of data is key to unlocking operational efficiencies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Companies<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Executives from TNT listen in during a presentation from TerrAvion, the largest provider in the United States of aerial imagery as a service for agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sunny Skies and Fertile Soils for TNT and AgriTech<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The emerging field of AgriTech is only the latest in a long line of traditional industries being disrupted by new technologies. As computer processing power continues to increase alongside the capability of artificial intelligence, it\u2019s inevitable that the resulting technologies \u2014 autonomous machinery, remote sensor subscription services, general-purpose data aggregation and analysis platforms \u2014 begin to take root in businesses everywhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TNT, sensing these changes on the horizon of the agriculture industry, came to SVIC thrice over to understand the new technologies redefining their business. By meeting with the startups and technology companies leading the way in AgriTech, TNT took home valuable insight into how to grow their business for the future \u2014 as well as potential partnerships in TerrAvion and Ceres Imaging. For TNT, the field of AgriTech is ripe for the picking. They\u2019re ready to harvest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Want to take a deep dive into the technological disruption sweeping through your own industry? SVIC has custom immersion programs tailored to every level of management and sector of the economy.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Click here to learn more.<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n","post_title":"TNT Reaps AgriTech Innovations from Silicon Valley Companies","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":760,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-04-17 15:00:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-04-17 22:00:00","post_content":"\n

Silicon Valley is undoubtedly a place where any company can find innovative, technology-driven solutions to its thorniest problems. That is just as true for enterprises from the agricultural sector as from anywhere else, although the tech mecca has traditionally not been associated with breakthroughs in farming in the same way it has for many other industries; transport (Uber, Tesla), travel (Airbnb) and e-commerce (Amazon, eBay) being perhaps among the most notable examples.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet for CBH<\/a>, Australia\u2019s biggest exporter of grain, a trip to Silicon Valley turned out to be hugely worthwhile. The organization had approached us at the Silicon Valley Innovation Center on the back of a positive recommendation from compatriots at Bank of Queensland (the financial institution took one of our tours not long ago). That was something which generated a certain amount of expectation on the client side and, therefore, a greater-than-usual amount of pressure on us to deliver.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We were, of course, unfazed by this. That said, the recent explosion of interest in bitcoin and the general rise in awareness globally of the influence of FinTech as an offshoot of the financial services sector meant that when it came to Bank of Queensland\u2019s tour, we were able to take for granted that the company\u2019s executives already had a reasonable understanding of what they were getting themselves into before they set foot in Northern California.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With CBH, however, we could not make any such assumptions. Unlike FinTech and its rising superstars (see Stripe and Coinbase<\/a>, among others) the world of AgriTech is somewhat more obscure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/zWnWL-wEJgs\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What the team from Australia certainly did know was where it was falling short; namely, a lack of collaboration with the startup ecosystem, a supply chain in need of digitization and a dearth of high-tech solutions to offer its clients, the majority of whom are farmers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC, we took our usual course of action: we studied the list of CBH\u2019s problems or \u201cpain points\u201d as we like to call them, and custom-designed a tour of Silicon Valley. The goal was to connect the grain exporter with some of AgriTech\u2019s hottest startups and introduce it to the core principles of corporate innovative as they are being practiced today by leading companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CBH\u2019s program was five days long. Here are the highlights:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Startup Engagement<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One of our specialties at SVIC is bridging the gap between corporates and early stage enterprises. Although seemingly inherently opposed to one another, the two classes of business are in many ways a natural fit. Where corporations have the money and the client base startups crave, startups have the innovative ideas and tech-savvy personnel so often needed at big companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That characterization is something of a stereotype but it proved to hold true for CBH. That was why we introduced the company to Planet, a startup building and operating satellites to collect data and imagery on the Earth\u2019s landmass. The application of such technology to agriculture and the advantages it can bring to farmers were immediately clear to CBH, which was eager to adopt Planet\u2019s approach for a platform of its own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further learnings came at a meeting with Granular where CBH found out about how cloud computing and big data analytics can help growers better manage resources in order to increase yields and profits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

So far, so innovative. But the best, as they say, was yet to come. It wasn\u2019t until the fifth and final day of the tour that CBH met Blue River Technology, a startup which proved to be the most inspiring of all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The appeal was in the marriage of computer vision and artificial intelligence: Blue River Technology\u2019s smart machines not only independently spray crops with herbicides to eliminate weeds, they also analyze each plant in a field to determine exactly what chemicals are needed where and in what quantities. Using this approach the startup is hoping it can do some good for the world by tackling herbicide-resistant weeds, a growing challenge to agriculture globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/WS3JRydN9sQ\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately for CBH, Blue River Technology\u2019s work is currently focused on crops other than grain. But just the fact of seeing the pioneering work being done by the startup was enough to convince the Australian exporter once and for all that being more involved in the Silicon Valley scene is vital. The team realized that if CBH could be the one to discover the next revolutionary breakthrough in wheat and barley cultivation, the advantages to the business could be almost inconceivably large.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plug in and Play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since its visit with us to Silicon Valley, CBH has launched its own software platform and taken steps to significantly optimize its supply chain operations. Clearly, the company has fully taken to heart the need for innovation. No doubt it will soon be partnering with a growing list of startups and setting off on all manner of interesting ventures to discover the next big breakthrough in grain agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC we like to think we had a hand in driving all this activity.  We can\u2019t take all the credit of course, our function having been simply to help the CBH team understand not only the solutions technology offers today but also the answers it might be able to provide tomorrow, given the right investments. All we could do was offer a stimulus, with any further steps being CBH\u2019s to make, and make alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

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Latest

\n

Collecting vast swaths of data is only as good as the actionable analysis that data can lead to. Enter general-purpose software: artificial intelligence and machine learning platforms that synthesize the terabytes of data produced by farming machines, remote sensors, and imaging services into meaningful insights. The TNT representatives visited companies like Trimble, Figure Eight, Granular, and the Farmers Business Network to better understand how agricultural data is being leveraged \u2014 both in specific cases and in aggregate \u2014 to yield better, stronger, faster-growing crops.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The TNT representatives saw this in action at Figure Eight, an enterprise-ready general purpose Machine Learning platform. An Account Executive at Figure Eight shared with the TNT groups the company\u2019s Human-in-the-Loop (HitL) model, which allows their employees to take any set of data \u2014 for example, months of aerial field imagery \u2014 and train a custom AI algorithm to process that data in a targeted way. That could mean automatically recognizing subtle problems in vegetation or almost anything else: tracking objects in videos, predicting maintenance for industrial machinery, categorizing products in eshops, creating intelligent chatbots, and so on ad infinitum. As the set of data grows \u2014 Figure Eight has already generated over 10 billion training labels \u2014 the power of machine learning for all their clients, in any context, grows with it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TNT saw the power of aggregated data firsthand at the headquarters of Farmers Business Network (FBN). FBN is an independent network of thousands of farmers who, by anonymously sharing their agronomic precision data, can unlock the analytical insight provided by over 8 million acres of American farmland. FBN\u2019s platform utilizes data science, machine learning, and billions of data points to democratically share objective, unbiased information throughout its network. This aggregated data helps farmers better understand their seed quality, soil fertility, crop values, and more. Though FBN hasn\u2019t yet extended to Brazil, its democratic aggregation model knows no geographical boundaries \u2014 and the TNT groups were curious about setting up similar programs and services in their own country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Key takeaway from Figure Eight and Farmers Business Network:<\/strong> in AgriTech as in other technologically disrupted industries, the aggregation and machine analysis of data is key to unlocking operational efficiencies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Companies<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Executives from TNT listen in during a presentation from TerrAvion, the largest provider in the United States of aerial imagery as a service for agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sunny Skies and Fertile Soils for TNT and AgriTech<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The emerging field of AgriTech is only the latest in a long line of traditional industries being disrupted by new technologies. As computer processing power continues to increase alongside the capability of artificial intelligence, it\u2019s inevitable that the resulting technologies \u2014 autonomous machinery, remote sensor subscription services, general-purpose data aggregation and analysis platforms \u2014 begin to take root in businesses everywhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TNT, sensing these changes on the horizon of the agriculture industry, came to SVIC thrice over to understand the new technologies redefining their business. By meeting with the startups and technology companies leading the way in AgriTech, TNT took home valuable insight into how to grow their business for the future \u2014 as well as potential partnerships in TerrAvion and Ceres Imaging. For TNT, the field of AgriTech is ripe for the picking. They\u2019re ready to harvest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Want to take a deep dive into the technological disruption sweeping through your own industry? SVIC has custom immersion programs tailored to every level of management and sector of the economy.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Click here to learn more.<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n","post_title":"TNT Reaps AgriTech Innovations from Silicon Valley Companies","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":760,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-04-17 15:00:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-04-17 22:00:00","post_content":"\n

Silicon Valley is undoubtedly a place where any company can find innovative, technology-driven solutions to its thorniest problems. That is just as true for enterprises from the agricultural sector as from anywhere else, although the tech mecca has traditionally not been associated with breakthroughs in farming in the same way it has for many other industries; transport (Uber, Tesla), travel (Airbnb) and e-commerce (Amazon, eBay) being perhaps among the most notable examples.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet for CBH<\/a>, Australia\u2019s biggest exporter of grain, a trip to Silicon Valley turned out to be hugely worthwhile. The organization had approached us at the Silicon Valley Innovation Center on the back of a positive recommendation from compatriots at Bank of Queensland (the financial institution took one of our tours not long ago). That was something which generated a certain amount of expectation on the client side and, therefore, a greater-than-usual amount of pressure on us to deliver.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We were, of course, unfazed by this. That said, the recent explosion of interest in bitcoin and the general rise in awareness globally of the influence of FinTech as an offshoot of the financial services sector meant that when it came to Bank of Queensland\u2019s tour, we were able to take for granted that the company\u2019s executives already had a reasonable understanding of what they were getting themselves into before they set foot in Northern California.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With CBH, however, we could not make any such assumptions. Unlike FinTech and its rising superstars (see Stripe and Coinbase<\/a>, among others) the world of AgriTech is somewhat more obscure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/zWnWL-wEJgs\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What the team from Australia certainly did know was where it was falling short; namely, a lack of collaboration with the startup ecosystem, a supply chain in need of digitization and a dearth of high-tech solutions to offer its clients, the majority of whom are farmers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC, we took our usual course of action: we studied the list of CBH\u2019s problems or \u201cpain points\u201d as we like to call them, and custom-designed a tour of Silicon Valley. The goal was to connect the grain exporter with some of AgriTech\u2019s hottest startups and introduce it to the core principles of corporate innovative as they are being practiced today by leading companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CBH\u2019s program was five days long. Here are the highlights:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Startup Engagement<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One of our specialties at SVIC is bridging the gap between corporates and early stage enterprises. Although seemingly inherently opposed to one another, the two classes of business are in many ways a natural fit. Where corporations have the money and the client base startups crave, startups have the innovative ideas and tech-savvy personnel so often needed at big companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That characterization is something of a stereotype but it proved to hold true for CBH. That was why we introduced the company to Planet, a startup building and operating satellites to collect data and imagery on the Earth\u2019s landmass. The application of such technology to agriculture and the advantages it can bring to farmers were immediately clear to CBH, which was eager to adopt Planet\u2019s approach for a platform of its own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further learnings came at a meeting with Granular where CBH found out about how cloud computing and big data analytics can help growers better manage resources in order to increase yields and profits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

So far, so innovative. But the best, as they say, was yet to come. It wasn\u2019t until the fifth and final day of the tour that CBH met Blue River Technology, a startup which proved to be the most inspiring of all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The appeal was in the marriage of computer vision and artificial intelligence: Blue River Technology\u2019s smart machines not only independently spray crops with herbicides to eliminate weeds, they also analyze each plant in a field to determine exactly what chemicals are needed where and in what quantities. Using this approach the startup is hoping it can do some good for the world by tackling herbicide-resistant weeds, a growing challenge to agriculture globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/WS3JRydN9sQ\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately for CBH, Blue River Technology\u2019s work is currently focused on crops other than grain. But just the fact of seeing the pioneering work being done by the startup was enough to convince the Australian exporter once and for all that being more involved in the Silicon Valley scene is vital. The team realized that if CBH could be the one to discover the next revolutionary breakthrough in wheat and barley cultivation, the advantages to the business could be almost inconceivably large.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plug in and Play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since its visit with us to Silicon Valley, CBH has launched its own software platform and taken steps to significantly optimize its supply chain operations. Clearly, the company has fully taken to heart the need for innovation. No doubt it will soon be partnering with a growing list of startups and setting off on all manner of interesting ventures to discover the next big breakthrough in grain agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC we like to think we had a hand in driving all this activity.  We can\u2019t take all the credit of course, our function having been simply to help the CBH team understand not only the solutions technology offers today but also the answers it might be able to provide tomorrow, given the right investments. All we could do was offer a stimulus, with any further steps being CBH\u2019s to make, and make alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

Search

Latest

\n

Digger Deeper Into Data to Change the Way We Grow<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Collecting vast swaths of data is only as good as the actionable analysis that data can lead to. Enter general-purpose software: artificial intelligence and machine learning platforms that synthesize the terabytes of data produced by farming machines, remote sensors, and imaging services into meaningful insights. The TNT representatives visited companies like Trimble, Figure Eight, Granular, and the Farmers Business Network to better understand how agricultural data is being leveraged \u2014 both in specific cases and in aggregate \u2014 to yield better, stronger, faster-growing crops.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The TNT representatives saw this in action at Figure Eight, an enterprise-ready general purpose Machine Learning platform. An Account Executive at Figure Eight shared with the TNT groups the company\u2019s Human-in-the-Loop (HitL) model, which allows their employees to take any set of data \u2014 for example, months of aerial field imagery \u2014 and train a custom AI algorithm to process that data in a targeted way. That could mean automatically recognizing subtle problems in vegetation or almost anything else: tracking objects in videos, predicting maintenance for industrial machinery, categorizing products in eshops, creating intelligent chatbots, and so on ad infinitum. As the set of data grows \u2014 Figure Eight has already generated over 10 billion training labels \u2014 the power of machine learning for all their clients, in any context, grows with it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TNT saw the power of aggregated data firsthand at the headquarters of Farmers Business Network (FBN). FBN is an independent network of thousands of farmers who, by anonymously sharing their agronomic precision data, can unlock the analytical insight provided by over 8 million acres of American farmland. FBN\u2019s platform utilizes data science, machine learning, and billions of data points to democratically share objective, unbiased information throughout its network. This aggregated data helps farmers better understand their seed quality, soil fertility, crop values, and more. Though FBN hasn\u2019t yet extended to Brazil, its democratic aggregation model knows no geographical boundaries \u2014 and the TNT groups were curious about setting up similar programs and services in their own country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Key takeaway from Figure Eight and Farmers Business Network:<\/strong> in AgriTech as in other technologically disrupted industries, the aggregation and machine analysis of data is key to unlocking operational efficiencies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Companies<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Executives from TNT listen in during a presentation from TerrAvion, the largest provider in the United States of aerial imagery as a service for agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sunny Skies and Fertile Soils for TNT and AgriTech<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The emerging field of AgriTech is only the latest in a long line of traditional industries being disrupted by new technologies. As computer processing power continues to increase alongside the capability of artificial intelligence, it\u2019s inevitable that the resulting technologies \u2014 autonomous machinery, remote sensor subscription services, general-purpose data aggregation and analysis platforms \u2014 begin to take root in businesses everywhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TNT, sensing these changes on the horizon of the agriculture industry, came to SVIC thrice over to understand the new technologies redefining their business. By meeting with the startups and technology companies leading the way in AgriTech, TNT took home valuable insight into how to grow their business for the future \u2014 as well as potential partnerships in TerrAvion and Ceres Imaging. For TNT, the field of AgriTech is ripe for the picking. They\u2019re ready to harvest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Want to take a deep dive into the technological disruption sweeping through your own industry? SVIC has custom immersion programs tailored to every level of management and sector of the economy.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Click here to learn more.<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n","post_title":"TNT Reaps AgriTech Innovations from Silicon Valley Companies","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":760,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-04-17 15:00:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-04-17 22:00:00","post_content":"\n

Silicon Valley is undoubtedly a place where any company can find innovative, technology-driven solutions to its thorniest problems. That is just as true for enterprises from the agricultural sector as from anywhere else, although the tech mecca has traditionally not been associated with breakthroughs in farming in the same way it has for many other industries; transport (Uber, Tesla), travel (Airbnb) and e-commerce (Amazon, eBay) being perhaps among the most notable examples.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet for CBH<\/a>, Australia\u2019s biggest exporter of grain, a trip to Silicon Valley turned out to be hugely worthwhile. The organization had approached us at the Silicon Valley Innovation Center on the back of a positive recommendation from compatriots at Bank of Queensland (the financial institution took one of our tours not long ago). That was something which generated a certain amount of expectation on the client side and, therefore, a greater-than-usual amount of pressure on us to deliver.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We were, of course, unfazed by this. That said, the recent explosion of interest in bitcoin and the general rise in awareness globally of the influence of FinTech as an offshoot of the financial services sector meant that when it came to Bank of Queensland\u2019s tour, we were able to take for granted that the company\u2019s executives already had a reasonable understanding of what they were getting themselves into before they set foot in Northern California.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With CBH, however, we could not make any such assumptions. Unlike FinTech and its rising superstars (see Stripe and Coinbase<\/a>, among others) the world of AgriTech is somewhat more obscure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/zWnWL-wEJgs\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What the team from Australia certainly did know was where it was falling short; namely, a lack of collaboration with the startup ecosystem, a supply chain in need of digitization and a dearth of high-tech solutions to offer its clients, the majority of whom are farmers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC, we took our usual course of action: we studied the list of CBH\u2019s problems or \u201cpain points\u201d as we like to call them, and custom-designed a tour of Silicon Valley. The goal was to connect the grain exporter with some of AgriTech\u2019s hottest startups and introduce it to the core principles of corporate innovative as they are being practiced today by leading companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CBH\u2019s program was five days long. Here are the highlights:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Startup Engagement<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One of our specialties at SVIC is bridging the gap between corporates and early stage enterprises. Although seemingly inherently opposed to one another, the two classes of business are in many ways a natural fit. Where corporations have the money and the client base startups crave, startups have the innovative ideas and tech-savvy personnel so often needed at big companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That characterization is something of a stereotype but it proved to hold true for CBH. That was why we introduced the company to Planet, a startup building and operating satellites to collect data and imagery on the Earth\u2019s landmass. The application of such technology to agriculture and the advantages it can bring to farmers were immediately clear to CBH, which was eager to adopt Planet\u2019s approach for a platform of its own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further learnings came at a meeting with Granular where CBH found out about how cloud computing and big data analytics can help growers better manage resources in order to increase yields and profits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

So far, so innovative. But the best, as they say, was yet to come. It wasn\u2019t until the fifth and final day of the tour that CBH met Blue River Technology, a startup which proved to be the most inspiring of all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The appeal was in the marriage of computer vision and artificial intelligence: Blue River Technology\u2019s smart machines not only independently spray crops with herbicides to eliminate weeds, they also analyze each plant in a field to determine exactly what chemicals are needed where and in what quantities. Using this approach the startup is hoping it can do some good for the world by tackling herbicide-resistant weeds, a growing challenge to agriculture globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/WS3JRydN9sQ\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately for CBH, Blue River Technology\u2019s work is currently focused on crops other than grain. But just the fact of seeing the pioneering work being done by the startup was enough to convince the Australian exporter once and for all that being more involved in the Silicon Valley scene is vital. The team realized that if CBH could be the one to discover the next revolutionary breakthrough in wheat and barley cultivation, the advantages to the business could be almost inconceivably large.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plug in and Play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since its visit with us to Silicon Valley, CBH has launched its own software platform and taken steps to significantly optimize its supply chain operations. Clearly, the company has fully taken to heart the need for innovation. No doubt it will soon be partnering with a growing list of startups and setting off on all manner of interesting ventures to discover the next big breakthrough in grain agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC we like to think we had a hand in driving all this activity.  We can\u2019t take all the credit of course, our function having been simply to help the CBH team understand not only the solutions technology offers today but also the answers it might be able to provide tomorrow, given the right investments. All we could do was offer a stimulus, with any further steps being CBH\u2019s to make, and make alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

Search

Latest

\n

Executives from TNT, one of the most experienced agribusiness tour operators in Brazil, hear from Ceres Imaging, a data as a service field imaging company.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Digger Deeper Into Data to Change the Way We Grow<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Collecting vast swaths of data is only as good as the actionable analysis that data can lead to. Enter general-purpose software: artificial intelligence and machine learning platforms that synthesize the terabytes of data produced by farming machines, remote sensors, and imaging services into meaningful insights. The TNT representatives visited companies like Trimble, Figure Eight, Granular, and the Farmers Business Network to better understand how agricultural data is being leveraged \u2014 both in specific cases and in aggregate \u2014 to yield better, stronger, faster-growing crops.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The TNT representatives saw this in action at Figure Eight, an enterprise-ready general purpose Machine Learning platform. An Account Executive at Figure Eight shared with the TNT groups the company\u2019s Human-in-the-Loop (HitL) model, which allows their employees to take any set of data \u2014 for example, months of aerial field imagery \u2014 and train a custom AI algorithm to process that data in a targeted way. That could mean automatically recognizing subtle problems in vegetation or almost anything else: tracking objects in videos, predicting maintenance for industrial machinery, categorizing products in eshops, creating intelligent chatbots, and so on ad infinitum. As the set of data grows \u2014 Figure Eight has already generated over 10 billion training labels \u2014 the power of machine learning for all their clients, in any context, grows with it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TNT saw the power of aggregated data firsthand at the headquarters of Farmers Business Network (FBN). FBN is an independent network of thousands of farmers who, by anonymously sharing their agronomic precision data, can unlock the analytical insight provided by over 8 million acres of American farmland. FBN\u2019s platform utilizes data science, machine learning, and billions of data points to democratically share objective, unbiased information throughout its network. This aggregated data helps farmers better understand their seed quality, soil fertility, crop values, and more. Though FBN hasn\u2019t yet extended to Brazil, its democratic aggregation model knows no geographical boundaries \u2014 and the TNT groups were curious about setting up similar programs and services in their own country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Key takeaway from Figure Eight and Farmers Business Network:<\/strong> in AgriTech as in other technologically disrupted industries, the aggregation and machine analysis of data is key to unlocking operational efficiencies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Companies<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Executives from TNT listen in during a presentation from TerrAvion, the largest provider in the United States of aerial imagery as a service for agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sunny Skies and Fertile Soils for TNT and AgriTech<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The emerging field of AgriTech is only the latest in a long line of traditional industries being disrupted by new technologies. As computer processing power continues to increase alongside the capability of artificial intelligence, it\u2019s inevitable that the resulting technologies \u2014 autonomous machinery, remote sensor subscription services, general-purpose data aggregation and analysis platforms \u2014 begin to take root in businesses everywhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TNT, sensing these changes on the horizon of the agriculture industry, came to SVIC thrice over to understand the new technologies redefining their business. By meeting with the startups and technology companies leading the way in AgriTech, TNT took home valuable insight into how to grow their business for the future \u2014 as well as potential partnerships in TerrAvion and Ceres Imaging. For TNT, the field of AgriTech is ripe for the picking. They\u2019re ready to harvest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Want to take a deep dive into the technological disruption sweeping through your own industry? SVIC has custom immersion programs tailored to every level of management and sector of the economy.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Click here to learn more.<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n","post_title":"TNT Reaps AgriTech Innovations from Silicon Valley Companies","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":760,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-04-17 15:00:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-04-17 22:00:00","post_content":"\n

Silicon Valley is undoubtedly a place where any company can find innovative, technology-driven solutions to its thorniest problems. That is just as true for enterprises from the agricultural sector as from anywhere else, although the tech mecca has traditionally not been associated with breakthroughs in farming in the same way it has for many other industries; transport (Uber, Tesla), travel (Airbnb) and e-commerce (Amazon, eBay) being perhaps among the most notable examples.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet for CBH<\/a>, Australia\u2019s biggest exporter of grain, a trip to Silicon Valley turned out to be hugely worthwhile. The organization had approached us at the Silicon Valley Innovation Center on the back of a positive recommendation from compatriots at Bank of Queensland (the financial institution took one of our tours not long ago). That was something which generated a certain amount of expectation on the client side and, therefore, a greater-than-usual amount of pressure on us to deliver.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We were, of course, unfazed by this. That said, the recent explosion of interest in bitcoin and the general rise in awareness globally of the influence of FinTech as an offshoot of the financial services sector meant that when it came to Bank of Queensland\u2019s tour, we were able to take for granted that the company\u2019s executives already had a reasonable understanding of what they were getting themselves into before they set foot in Northern California.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With CBH, however, we could not make any such assumptions. Unlike FinTech and its rising superstars (see Stripe and Coinbase<\/a>, among others) the world of AgriTech is somewhat more obscure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/zWnWL-wEJgs\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What the team from Australia certainly did know was where it was falling short; namely, a lack of collaboration with the startup ecosystem, a supply chain in need of digitization and a dearth of high-tech solutions to offer its clients, the majority of whom are farmers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC, we took our usual course of action: we studied the list of CBH\u2019s problems or \u201cpain points\u201d as we like to call them, and custom-designed a tour of Silicon Valley. The goal was to connect the grain exporter with some of AgriTech\u2019s hottest startups and introduce it to the core principles of corporate innovative as they are being practiced today by leading companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CBH\u2019s program was five days long. Here are the highlights:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Startup Engagement<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One of our specialties at SVIC is bridging the gap between corporates and early stage enterprises. Although seemingly inherently opposed to one another, the two classes of business are in many ways a natural fit. Where corporations have the money and the client base startups crave, startups have the innovative ideas and tech-savvy personnel so often needed at big companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That characterization is something of a stereotype but it proved to hold true for CBH. That was why we introduced the company to Planet, a startup building and operating satellites to collect data and imagery on the Earth\u2019s landmass. The application of such technology to agriculture and the advantages it can bring to farmers were immediately clear to CBH, which was eager to adopt Planet\u2019s approach for a platform of its own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further learnings came at a meeting with Granular where CBH found out about how cloud computing and big data analytics can help growers better manage resources in order to increase yields and profits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

So far, so innovative. But the best, as they say, was yet to come. It wasn\u2019t until the fifth and final day of the tour that CBH met Blue River Technology, a startup which proved to be the most inspiring of all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The appeal was in the marriage of computer vision and artificial intelligence: Blue River Technology\u2019s smart machines not only independently spray crops with herbicides to eliminate weeds, they also analyze each plant in a field to determine exactly what chemicals are needed where and in what quantities. Using this approach the startup is hoping it can do some good for the world by tackling herbicide-resistant weeds, a growing challenge to agriculture globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/WS3JRydN9sQ\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately for CBH, Blue River Technology\u2019s work is currently focused on crops other than grain. But just the fact of seeing the pioneering work being done by the startup was enough to convince the Australian exporter once and for all that being more involved in the Silicon Valley scene is vital. The team realized that if CBH could be the one to discover the next revolutionary breakthrough in wheat and barley cultivation, the advantages to the business could be almost inconceivably large.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plug in and Play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since its visit with us to Silicon Valley, CBH has launched its own software platform and taken steps to significantly optimize its supply chain operations. Clearly, the company has fully taken to heart the need for innovation. No doubt it will soon be partnering with a growing list of startups and setting off on all manner of interesting ventures to discover the next big breakthrough in grain agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC we like to think we had a hand in driving all this activity.  We can\u2019t take all the credit of course, our function having been simply to help the CBH team understand not only the solutions technology offers today but also the answers it might be able to provide tomorrow, given the right investments. All we could do was offer a stimulus, with any further steps being CBH\u2019s to make, and make alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

Search

Latest

\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Executives from TNT, one of the most experienced agribusiness tour operators in Brazil, hear from Ceres Imaging, a data as a service field imaging company.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Digger Deeper Into Data to Change the Way We Grow<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Collecting vast swaths of data is only as good as the actionable analysis that data can lead to. Enter general-purpose software: artificial intelligence and machine learning platforms that synthesize the terabytes of data produced by farming machines, remote sensors, and imaging services into meaningful insights. The TNT representatives visited companies like Trimble, Figure Eight, Granular, and the Farmers Business Network to better understand how agricultural data is being leveraged \u2014 both in specific cases and in aggregate \u2014 to yield better, stronger, faster-growing crops.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The TNT representatives saw this in action at Figure Eight, an enterprise-ready general purpose Machine Learning platform. An Account Executive at Figure Eight shared with the TNT groups the company\u2019s Human-in-the-Loop (HitL) model, which allows their employees to take any set of data \u2014 for example, months of aerial field imagery \u2014 and train a custom AI algorithm to process that data in a targeted way. That could mean automatically recognizing subtle problems in vegetation or almost anything else: tracking objects in videos, predicting maintenance for industrial machinery, categorizing products in eshops, creating intelligent chatbots, and so on ad infinitum. As the set of data grows \u2014 Figure Eight has already generated over 10 billion training labels \u2014 the power of machine learning for all their clients, in any context, grows with it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TNT saw the power of aggregated data firsthand at the headquarters of Farmers Business Network (FBN). FBN is an independent network of thousands of farmers who, by anonymously sharing their agronomic precision data, can unlock the analytical insight provided by over 8 million acres of American farmland. FBN\u2019s platform utilizes data science, machine learning, and billions of data points to democratically share objective, unbiased information throughout its network. This aggregated data helps farmers better understand their seed quality, soil fertility, crop values, and more. Though FBN hasn\u2019t yet extended to Brazil, its democratic aggregation model knows no geographical boundaries \u2014 and the TNT groups were curious about setting up similar programs and services in their own country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Key takeaway from Figure Eight and Farmers Business Network:<\/strong> in AgriTech as in other technologically disrupted industries, the aggregation and machine analysis of data is key to unlocking operational efficiencies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Companies<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Executives from TNT listen in during a presentation from TerrAvion, the largest provider in the United States of aerial imagery as a service for agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sunny Skies and Fertile Soils for TNT and AgriTech<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The emerging field of AgriTech is only the latest in a long line of traditional industries being disrupted by new technologies. As computer processing power continues to increase alongside the capability of artificial intelligence, it\u2019s inevitable that the resulting technologies \u2014 autonomous machinery, remote sensor subscription services, general-purpose data aggregation and analysis platforms \u2014 begin to take root in businesses everywhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TNT, sensing these changes on the horizon of the agriculture industry, came to SVIC thrice over to understand the new technologies redefining their business. By meeting with the startups and technology companies leading the way in AgriTech, TNT took home valuable insight into how to grow their business for the future \u2014 as well as potential partnerships in TerrAvion and Ceres Imaging. For TNT, the field of AgriTech is ripe for the picking. They\u2019re ready to harvest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Want to take a deep dive into the technological disruption sweeping through your own industry? SVIC has custom immersion programs tailored to every level of management and sector of the economy.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Click here to learn more.<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n","post_title":"TNT Reaps AgriTech Innovations from Silicon Valley Companies","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":760,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-04-17 15:00:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-04-17 22:00:00","post_content":"\n

Silicon Valley is undoubtedly a place where any company can find innovative, technology-driven solutions to its thorniest problems. That is just as true for enterprises from the agricultural sector as from anywhere else, although the tech mecca has traditionally not been associated with breakthroughs in farming in the same way it has for many other industries; transport (Uber, Tesla), travel (Airbnb) and e-commerce (Amazon, eBay) being perhaps among the most notable examples.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet for CBH<\/a>, Australia\u2019s biggest exporter of grain, a trip to Silicon Valley turned out to be hugely worthwhile. The organization had approached us at the Silicon Valley Innovation Center on the back of a positive recommendation from compatriots at Bank of Queensland (the financial institution took one of our tours not long ago). That was something which generated a certain amount of expectation on the client side and, therefore, a greater-than-usual amount of pressure on us to deliver.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We were, of course, unfazed by this. That said, the recent explosion of interest in bitcoin and the general rise in awareness globally of the influence of FinTech as an offshoot of the financial services sector meant that when it came to Bank of Queensland\u2019s tour, we were able to take for granted that the company\u2019s executives already had a reasonable understanding of what they were getting themselves into before they set foot in Northern California.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With CBH, however, we could not make any such assumptions. Unlike FinTech and its rising superstars (see Stripe and Coinbase<\/a>, among others) the world of AgriTech is somewhat more obscure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/zWnWL-wEJgs\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What the team from Australia certainly did know was where it was falling short; namely, a lack of collaboration with the startup ecosystem, a supply chain in need of digitization and a dearth of high-tech solutions to offer its clients, the majority of whom are farmers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC, we took our usual course of action: we studied the list of CBH\u2019s problems or \u201cpain points\u201d as we like to call them, and custom-designed a tour of Silicon Valley. The goal was to connect the grain exporter with some of AgriTech\u2019s hottest startups and introduce it to the core principles of corporate innovative as they are being practiced today by leading companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CBH\u2019s program was five days long. Here are the highlights:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Startup Engagement<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One of our specialties at SVIC is bridging the gap between corporates and early stage enterprises. Although seemingly inherently opposed to one another, the two classes of business are in many ways a natural fit. Where corporations have the money and the client base startups crave, startups have the innovative ideas and tech-savvy personnel so often needed at big companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That characterization is something of a stereotype but it proved to hold true for CBH. That was why we introduced the company to Planet, a startup building and operating satellites to collect data and imagery on the Earth\u2019s landmass. The application of such technology to agriculture and the advantages it can bring to farmers were immediately clear to CBH, which was eager to adopt Planet\u2019s approach for a platform of its own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further learnings came at a meeting with Granular where CBH found out about how cloud computing and big data analytics can help growers better manage resources in order to increase yields and profits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

So far, so innovative. But the best, as they say, was yet to come. It wasn\u2019t until the fifth and final day of the tour that CBH met Blue River Technology, a startup which proved to be the most inspiring of all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The appeal was in the marriage of computer vision and artificial intelligence: Blue River Technology\u2019s smart machines not only independently spray crops with herbicides to eliminate weeds, they also analyze each plant in a field to determine exactly what chemicals are needed where and in what quantities. Using this approach the startup is hoping it can do some good for the world by tackling herbicide-resistant weeds, a growing challenge to agriculture globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/WS3JRydN9sQ\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately for CBH, Blue River Technology\u2019s work is currently focused on crops other than grain. But just the fact of seeing the pioneering work being done by the startup was enough to convince the Australian exporter once and for all that being more involved in the Silicon Valley scene is vital. The team realized that if CBH could be the one to discover the next revolutionary breakthrough in wheat and barley cultivation, the advantages to the business could be almost inconceivably large.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plug in and Play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since its visit with us to Silicon Valley, CBH has launched its own software platform and taken steps to significantly optimize its supply chain operations. Clearly, the company has fully taken to heart the need for innovation. No doubt it will soon be partnering with a growing list of startups and setting off on all manner of interesting ventures to discover the next big breakthrough in grain agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC we like to think we had a hand in driving all this activity.  We can\u2019t take all the credit of course, our function having been simply to help the CBH team understand not only the solutions technology offers today but also the answers it might be able to provide tomorrow, given the right investments. All we could do was offer a stimulus, with any further steps being CBH\u2019s to make, and make alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

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\n

Key takeaway from TerrAvion and Ceres Imaging: <\/strong>technological innovations pave the way for new services like aerial imaging and new business models like DaaS to enter the agricultural sector.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Executives from TNT, one of the most experienced agribusiness tour operators in Brazil, hear from Ceres Imaging, a data as a service field imaging company.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Digger Deeper Into Data to Change the Way We Grow<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Collecting vast swaths of data is only as good as the actionable analysis that data can lead to. Enter general-purpose software: artificial intelligence and machine learning platforms that synthesize the terabytes of data produced by farming machines, remote sensors, and imaging services into meaningful insights. The TNT representatives visited companies like Trimble, Figure Eight, Granular, and the Farmers Business Network to better understand how agricultural data is being leveraged \u2014 both in specific cases and in aggregate \u2014 to yield better, stronger, faster-growing crops.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The TNT representatives saw this in action at Figure Eight, an enterprise-ready general purpose Machine Learning platform. An Account Executive at Figure Eight shared with the TNT groups the company\u2019s Human-in-the-Loop (HitL) model, which allows their employees to take any set of data \u2014 for example, months of aerial field imagery \u2014 and train a custom AI algorithm to process that data in a targeted way. That could mean automatically recognizing subtle problems in vegetation or almost anything else: tracking objects in videos, predicting maintenance for industrial machinery, categorizing products in eshops, creating intelligent chatbots, and so on ad infinitum. As the set of data grows \u2014 Figure Eight has already generated over 10 billion training labels \u2014 the power of machine learning for all their clients, in any context, grows with it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TNT saw the power of aggregated data firsthand at the headquarters of Farmers Business Network (FBN). FBN is an independent network of thousands of farmers who, by anonymously sharing their agronomic precision data, can unlock the analytical insight provided by over 8 million acres of American farmland. FBN\u2019s platform utilizes data science, machine learning, and billions of data points to democratically share objective, unbiased information throughout its network. This aggregated data helps farmers better understand their seed quality, soil fertility, crop values, and more. Though FBN hasn\u2019t yet extended to Brazil, its democratic aggregation model knows no geographical boundaries \u2014 and the TNT groups were curious about setting up similar programs and services in their own country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Key takeaway from Figure Eight and Farmers Business Network:<\/strong> in AgriTech as in other technologically disrupted industries, the aggregation and machine analysis of data is key to unlocking operational efficiencies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Companies<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Executives from TNT listen in during a presentation from TerrAvion, the largest provider in the United States of aerial imagery as a service for agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sunny Skies and Fertile Soils for TNT and AgriTech<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The emerging field of AgriTech is only the latest in a long line of traditional industries being disrupted by new technologies. As computer processing power continues to increase alongside the capability of artificial intelligence, it\u2019s inevitable that the resulting technologies \u2014 autonomous machinery, remote sensor subscription services, general-purpose data aggregation and analysis platforms \u2014 begin to take root in businesses everywhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TNT, sensing these changes on the horizon of the agriculture industry, came to SVIC thrice over to understand the new technologies redefining their business. By meeting with the startups and technology companies leading the way in AgriTech, TNT took home valuable insight into how to grow their business for the future \u2014 as well as potential partnerships in TerrAvion and Ceres Imaging. For TNT, the field of AgriTech is ripe for the picking. They\u2019re ready to harvest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Want to take a deep dive into the technological disruption sweeping through your own industry? SVIC has custom immersion programs tailored to every level of management and sector of the economy.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Click here to learn more.<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n","post_title":"TNT Reaps AgriTech Innovations from Silicon Valley Companies","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":760,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-04-17 15:00:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-04-17 22:00:00","post_content":"\n

Silicon Valley is undoubtedly a place where any company can find innovative, technology-driven solutions to its thorniest problems. That is just as true for enterprises from the agricultural sector as from anywhere else, although the tech mecca has traditionally not been associated with breakthroughs in farming in the same way it has for many other industries; transport (Uber, Tesla), travel (Airbnb) and e-commerce (Amazon, eBay) being perhaps among the most notable examples.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet for CBH<\/a>, Australia\u2019s biggest exporter of grain, a trip to Silicon Valley turned out to be hugely worthwhile. The organization had approached us at the Silicon Valley Innovation Center on the back of a positive recommendation from compatriots at Bank of Queensland (the financial institution took one of our tours not long ago). That was something which generated a certain amount of expectation on the client side and, therefore, a greater-than-usual amount of pressure on us to deliver.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We were, of course, unfazed by this. That said, the recent explosion of interest in bitcoin and the general rise in awareness globally of the influence of FinTech as an offshoot of the financial services sector meant that when it came to Bank of Queensland\u2019s tour, we were able to take for granted that the company\u2019s executives already had a reasonable understanding of what they were getting themselves into before they set foot in Northern California.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With CBH, however, we could not make any such assumptions. Unlike FinTech and its rising superstars (see Stripe and Coinbase<\/a>, among others) the world of AgriTech is somewhat more obscure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/zWnWL-wEJgs\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What the team from Australia certainly did know was where it was falling short; namely, a lack of collaboration with the startup ecosystem, a supply chain in need of digitization and a dearth of high-tech solutions to offer its clients, the majority of whom are farmers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC, we took our usual course of action: we studied the list of CBH\u2019s problems or \u201cpain points\u201d as we like to call them, and custom-designed a tour of Silicon Valley. The goal was to connect the grain exporter with some of AgriTech\u2019s hottest startups and introduce it to the core principles of corporate innovative as they are being practiced today by leading companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CBH\u2019s program was five days long. Here are the highlights:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Startup Engagement<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One of our specialties at SVIC is bridging the gap between corporates and early stage enterprises. Although seemingly inherently opposed to one another, the two classes of business are in many ways a natural fit. Where corporations have the money and the client base startups crave, startups have the innovative ideas and tech-savvy personnel so often needed at big companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That characterization is something of a stereotype but it proved to hold true for CBH. That was why we introduced the company to Planet, a startup building and operating satellites to collect data and imagery on the Earth\u2019s landmass. The application of such technology to agriculture and the advantages it can bring to farmers were immediately clear to CBH, which was eager to adopt Planet\u2019s approach for a platform of its own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further learnings came at a meeting with Granular where CBH found out about how cloud computing and big data analytics can help growers better manage resources in order to increase yields and profits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

So far, so innovative. But the best, as they say, was yet to come. It wasn\u2019t until the fifth and final day of the tour that CBH met Blue River Technology, a startup which proved to be the most inspiring of all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The appeal was in the marriage of computer vision and artificial intelligence: Blue River Technology\u2019s smart machines not only independently spray crops with herbicides to eliminate weeds, they also analyze each plant in a field to determine exactly what chemicals are needed where and in what quantities. Using this approach the startup is hoping it can do some good for the world by tackling herbicide-resistant weeds, a growing challenge to agriculture globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/WS3JRydN9sQ\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately for CBH, Blue River Technology\u2019s work is currently focused on crops other than grain. But just the fact of seeing the pioneering work being done by the startup was enough to convince the Australian exporter once and for all that being more involved in the Silicon Valley scene is vital. The team realized that if CBH could be the one to discover the next revolutionary breakthrough in wheat and barley cultivation, the advantages to the business could be almost inconceivably large.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plug in and Play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since its visit with us to Silicon Valley, CBH has launched its own software platform and taken steps to significantly optimize its supply chain operations. Clearly, the company has fully taken to heart the need for innovation. No doubt it will soon be partnering with a growing list of startups and setting off on all manner of interesting ventures to discover the next big breakthrough in grain agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC we like to think we had a hand in driving all this activity.  We can\u2019t take all the credit of course, our function having been simply to help the CBH team understand not only the solutions technology offers today but also the answers it might be able to provide tomorrow, given the right investments. All we could do was offer a stimulus, with any further steps being CBH\u2019s to make, and make alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

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Latest

\n

And Ceres\u2019 business model is as innovative as their tech: pay by the acre, or as they call it, Data as a Service (DaaS). Their scalable subscription model includes access to a team of on-demand scientists, agronomists, and hydrologists who can use the maps to help farmers improve crop management, efficiently apply fertilizer, optimize irrigation schedules, and more. This type of subscription access to technology has proved a killer business model for companies like streaming networks and car sharing services. That it\u2019s already making its way into agriculture is another sign of the industry\u2019s rapid shift to new technologies. The TNT groups were keen on exploring this new business model by partnering with Ceres once the company comes to Brazil.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Key takeaway from TerrAvion and Ceres Imaging: <\/strong>technological innovations pave the way for new services like aerial imaging and new business models like DaaS to enter the agricultural sector.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Executives from TNT, one of the most experienced agribusiness tour operators in Brazil, hear from Ceres Imaging, a data as a service field imaging company.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Digger Deeper Into Data to Change the Way We Grow<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Collecting vast swaths of data is only as good as the actionable analysis that data can lead to. Enter general-purpose software: artificial intelligence and machine learning platforms that synthesize the terabytes of data produced by farming machines, remote sensors, and imaging services into meaningful insights. The TNT representatives visited companies like Trimble, Figure Eight, Granular, and the Farmers Business Network to better understand how agricultural data is being leveraged \u2014 both in specific cases and in aggregate \u2014 to yield better, stronger, faster-growing crops.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The TNT representatives saw this in action at Figure Eight, an enterprise-ready general purpose Machine Learning platform. An Account Executive at Figure Eight shared with the TNT groups the company\u2019s Human-in-the-Loop (HitL) model, which allows their employees to take any set of data \u2014 for example, months of aerial field imagery \u2014 and train a custom AI algorithm to process that data in a targeted way. That could mean automatically recognizing subtle problems in vegetation or almost anything else: tracking objects in videos, predicting maintenance for industrial machinery, categorizing products in eshops, creating intelligent chatbots, and so on ad infinitum. As the set of data grows \u2014 Figure Eight has already generated over 10 billion training labels \u2014 the power of machine learning for all their clients, in any context, grows with it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TNT saw the power of aggregated data firsthand at the headquarters of Farmers Business Network (FBN). FBN is an independent network of thousands of farmers who, by anonymously sharing their agronomic precision data, can unlock the analytical insight provided by over 8 million acres of American farmland. FBN\u2019s platform utilizes data science, machine learning, and billions of data points to democratically share objective, unbiased information throughout its network. This aggregated data helps farmers better understand their seed quality, soil fertility, crop values, and more. Though FBN hasn\u2019t yet extended to Brazil, its democratic aggregation model knows no geographical boundaries \u2014 and the TNT groups were curious about setting up similar programs and services in their own country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Key takeaway from Figure Eight and Farmers Business Network:<\/strong> in AgriTech as in other technologically disrupted industries, the aggregation and machine analysis of data is key to unlocking operational efficiencies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Companies<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Executives from TNT listen in during a presentation from TerrAvion, the largest provider in the United States of aerial imagery as a service for agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sunny Skies and Fertile Soils for TNT and AgriTech<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The emerging field of AgriTech is only the latest in a long line of traditional industries being disrupted by new technologies. As computer processing power continues to increase alongside the capability of artificial intelligence, it\u2019s inevitable that the resulting technologies \u2014 autonomous machinery, remote sensor subscription services, general-purpose data aggregation and analysis platforms \u2014 begin to take root in businesses everywhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TNT, sensing these changes on the horizon of the agriculture industry, came to SVIC thrice over to understand the new technologies redefining their business. By meeting with the startups and technology companies leading the way in AgriTech, TNT took home valuable insight into how to grow their business for the future \u2014 as well as potential partnerships in TerrAvion and Ceres Imaging. For TNT, the field of AgriTech is ripe for the picking. They\u2019re ready to harvest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Want to take a deep dive into the technological disruption sweeping through your own industry? SVIC has custom immersion programs tailored to every level of management and sector of the economy.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Click here to learn more.<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n","post_title":"TNT Reaps AgriTech Innovations from Silicon Valley Companies","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":760,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-04-17 15:00:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-04-17 22:00:00","post_content":"\n

Silicon Valley is undoubtedly a place where any company can find innovative, technology-driven solutions to its thorniest problems. That is just as true for enterprises from the agricultural sector as from anywhere else, although the tech mecca has traditionally not been associated with breakthroughs in farming in the same way it has for many other industries; transport (Uber, Tesla), travel (Airbnb) and e-commerce (Amazon, eBay) being perhaps among the most notable examples.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet for CBH<\/a>, Australia\u2019s biggest exporter of grain, a trip to Silicon Valley turned out to be hugely worthwhile. The organization had approached us at the Silicon Valley Innovation Center on the back of a positive recommendation from compatriots at Bank of Queensland (the financial institution took one of our tours not long ago). That was something which generated a certain amount of expectation on the client side and, therefore, a greater-than-usual amount of pressure on us to deliver.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We were, of course, unfazed by this. That said, the recent explosion of interest in bitcoin and the general rise in awareness globally of the influence of FinTech as an offshoot of the financial services sector meant that when it came to Bank of Queensland\u2019s tour, we were able to take for granted that the company\u2019s executives already had a reasonable understanding of what they were getting themselves into before they set foot in Northern California.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With CBH, however, we could not make any such assumptions. Unlike FinTech and its rising superstars (see Stripe and Coinbase<\/a>, among others) the world of AgriTech is somewhat more obscure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/zWnWL-wEJgs\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What the team from Australia certainly did know was where it was falling short; namely, a lack of collaboration with the startup ecosystem, a supply chain in need of digitization and a dearth of high-tech solutions to offer its clients, the majority of whom are farmers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC, we took our usual course of action: we studied the list of CBH\u2019s problems or \u201cpain points\u201d as we like to call them, and custom-designed a tour of Silicon Valley. The goal was to connect the grain exporter with some of AgriTech\u2019s hottest startups and introduce it to the core principles of corporate innovative as they are being practiced today by leading companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CBH\u2019s program was five days long. Here are the highlights:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Startup Engagement<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One of our specialties at SVIC is bridging the gap between corporates and early stage enterprises. Although seemingly inherently opposed to one another, the two classes of business are in many ways a natural fit. Where corporations have the money and the client base startups crave, startups have the innovative ideas and tech-savvy personnel so often needed at big companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That characterization is something of a stereotype but it proved to hold true for CBH. That was why we introduced the company to Planet, a startup building and operating satellites to collect data and imagery on the Earth\u2019s landmass. The application of such technology to agriculture and the advantages it can bring to farmers were immediately clear to CBH, which was eager to adopt Planet\u2019s approach for a platform of its own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further learnings came at a meeting with Granular where CBH found out about how cloud computing and big data analytics can help growers better manage resources in order to increase yields and profits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

So far, so innovative. But the best, as they say, was yet to come. It wasn\u2019t until the fifth and final day of the tour that CBH met Blue River Technology, a startup which proved to be the most inspiring of all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The appeal was in the marriage of computer vision and artificial intelligence: Blue River Technology\u2019s smart machines not only independently spray crops with herbicides to eliminate weeds, they also analyze each plant in a field to determine exactly what chemicals are needed where and in what quantities. Using this approach the startup is hoping it can do some good for the world by tackling herbicide-resistant weeds, a growing challenge to agriculture globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/WS3JRydN9sQ\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately for CBH, Blue River Technology\u2019s work is currently focused on crops other than grain. But just the fact of seeing the pioneering work being done by the startup was enough to convince the Australian exporter once and for all that being more involved in the Silicon Valley scene is vital. The team realized that if CBH could be the one to discover the next revolutionary breakthrough in wheat and barley cultivation, the advantages to the business could be almost inconceivably large.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plug in and Play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since its visit with us to Silicon Valley, CBH has launched its own software platform and taken steps to significantly optimize its supply chain operations. Clearly, the company has fully taken to heart the need for innovation. No doubt it will soon be partnering with a growing list of startups and setting off on all manner of interesting ventures to discover the next big breakthrough in grain agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC we like to think we had a hand in driving all this activity.  We can\u2019t take all the credit of course, our function having been simply to help the CBH team understand not only the solutions technology offers today but also the answers it might be able to provide tomorrow, given the right investments. All we could do was offer a stimulus, with any further steps being CBH\u2019s to make, and make alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

Search

Latest

\n

Ceres Imaging takes remote sensing technology a step further. Like TerrAvion, they specialize in aerial spectral imagery via low-flying planes. Where Ceres shines, explained their Vice President of Product to the TNT groups, is in the specialized software they\u2019ve developed to make sense of their multispectral images. Using proprietary image processing and crop modeling techniques, Ceres weaves together hundreds of overlapping frames into a seamless mosaic of field data. Their software can count every individual tree in an acre and has even pioneered a new technique for spectrally measuring plant transpiration \u2014 as verified by the University of California Cooperative Extension.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And Ceres\u2019 business model is as innovative as their tech: pay by the acre, or as they call it, Data as a Service (DaaS). Their scalable subscription model includes access to a team of on-demand scientists, agronomists, and hydrologists who can use the maps to help farmers improve crop management, efficiently apply fertilizer, optimize irrigation schedules, and more. This type of subscription access to technology has proved a killer business model for companies like streaming networks and car sharing services. That it\u2019s already making its way into agriculture is another sign of the industry\u2019s rapid shift to new technologies. The TNT groups were keen on exploring this new business model by partnering with Ceres once the company comes to Brazil.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Key takeaway from TerrAvion and Ceres Imaging: <\/strong>technological innovations pave the way for new services like aerial imaging and new business models like DaaS to enter the agricultural sector.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Executives from TNT, one of the most experienced agribusiness tour operators in Brazil, hear from Ceres Imaging, a data as a service field imaging company.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Digger Deeper Into Data to Change the Way We Grow<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Collecting vast swaths of data is only as good as the actionable analysis that data can lead to. Enter general-purpose software: artificial intelligence and machine learning platforms that synthesize the terabytes of data produced by farming machines, remote sensors, and imaging services into meaningful insights. The TNT representatives visited companies like Trimble, Figure Eight, Granular, and the Farmers Business Network to better understand how agricultural data is being leveraged \u2014 both in specific cases and in aggregate \u2014 to yield better, stronger, faster-growing crops.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The TNT representatives saw this in action at Figure Eight, an enterprise-ready general purpose Machine Learning platform. An Account Executive at Figure Eight shared with the TNT groups the company\u2019s Human-in-the-Loop (HitL) model, which allows their employees to take any set of data \u2014 for example, months of aerial field imagery \u2014 and train a custom AI algorithm to process that data in a targeted way. That could mean automatically recognizing subtle problems in vegetation or almost anything else: tracking objects in videos, predicting maintenance for industrial machinery, categorizing products in eshops, creating intelligent chatbots, and so on ad infinitum. As the set of data grows \u2014 Figure Eight has already generated over 10 billion training labels \u2014 the power of machine learning for all their clients, in any context, grows with it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TNT saw the power of aggregated data firsthand at the headquarters of Farmers Business Network (FBN). FBN is an independent network of thousands of farmers who, by anonymously sharing their agronomic precision data, can unlock the analytical insight provided by over 8 million acres of American farmland. FBN\u2019s platform utilizes data science, machine learning, and billions of data points to democratically share objective, unbiased information throughout its network. This aggregated data helps farmers better understand their seed quality, soil fertility, crop values, and more. Though FBN hasn\u2019t yet extended to Brazil, its democratic aggregation model knows no geographical boundaries \u2014 and the TNT groups were curious about setting up similar programs and services in their own country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Key takeaway from Figure Eight and Farmers Business Network:<\/strong> in AgriTech as in other technologically disrupted industries, the aggregation and machine analysis of data is key to unlocking operational efficiencies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Companies<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Executives from TNT listen in during a presentation from TerrAvion, the largest provider in the United States of aerial imagery as a service for agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sunny Skies and Fertile Soils for TNT and AgriTech<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The emerging field of AgriTech is only the latest in a long line of traditional industries being disrupted by new technologies. As computer processing power continues to increase alongside the capability of artificial intelligence, it\u2019s inevitable that the resulting technologies \u2014 autonomous machinery, remote sensor subscription services, general-purpose data aggregation and analysis platforms \u2014 begin to take root in businesses everywhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TNT, sensing these changes on the horizon of the agriculture industry, came to SVIC thrice over to understand the new technologies redefining their business. By meeting with the startups and technology companies leading the way in AgriTech, TNT took home valuable insight into how to grow their business for the future \u2014 as well as potential partnerships in TerrAvion and Ceres Imaging. For TNT, the field of AgriTech is ripe for the picking. They\u2019re ready to harvest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Want to take a deep dive into the technological disruption sweeping through your own industry? SVIC has custom immersion programs tailored to every level of management and sector of the economy.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Click here to learn more.<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n","post_title":"TNT Reaps AgriTech Innovations from Silicon Valley Companies","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":760,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-04-17 15:00:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-04-17 22:00:00","post_content":"\n

Silicon Valley is undoubtedly a place where any company can find innovative, technology-driven solutions to its thorniest problems. That is just as true for enterprises from the agricultural sector as from anywhere else, although the tech mecca has traditionally not been associated with breakthroughs in farming in the same way it has for many other industries; transport (Uber, Tesla), travel (Airbnb) and e-commerce (Amazon, eBay) being perhaps among the most notable examples.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet for CBH<\/a>, Australia\u2019s biggest exporter of grain, a trip to Silicon Valley turned out to be hugely worthwhile. The organization had approached us at the Silicon Valley Innovation Center on the back of a positive recommendation from compatriots at Bank of Queensland (the financial institution took one of our tours not long ago). That was something which generated a certain amount of expectation on the client side and, therefore, a greater-than-usual amount of pressure on us to deliver.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We were, of course, unfazed by this. That said, the recent explosion of interest in bitcoin and the general rise in awareness globally of the influence of FinTech as an offshoot of the financial services sector meant that when it came to Bank of Queensland\u2019s tour, we were able to take for granted that the company\u2019s executives already had a reasonable understanding of what they were getting themselves into before they set foot in Northern California.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With CBH, however, we could not make any such assumptions. Unlike FinTech and its rising superstars (see Stripe and Coinbase<\/a>, among others) the world of AgriTech is somewhat more obscure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/zWnWL-wEJgs\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What the team from Australia certainly did know was where it was falling short; namely, a lack of collaboration with the startup ecosystem, a supply chain in need of digitization and a dearth of high-tech solutions to offer its clients, the majority of whom are farmers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC, we took our usual course of action: we studied the list of CBH\u2019s problems or \u201cpain points\u201d as we like to call them, and custom-designed a tour of Silicon Valley. The goal was to connect the grain exporter with some of AgriTech\u2019s hottest startups and introduce it to the core principles of corporate innovative as they are being practiced today by leading companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CBH\u2019s program was five days long. Here are the highlights:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Startup Engagement<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One of our specialties at SVIC is bridging the gap between corporates and early stage enterprises. Although seemingly inherently opposed to one another, the two classes of business are in many ways a natural fit. Where corporations have the money and the client base startups crave, startups have the innovative ideas and tech-savvy personnel so often needed at big companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That characterization is something of a stereotype but it proved to hold true for CBH. That was why we introduced the company to Planet, a startup building and operating satellites to collect data and imagery on the Earth\u2019s landmass. The application of such technology to agriculture and the advantages it can bring to farmers were immediately clear to CBH, which was eager to adopt Planet\u2019s approach for a platform of its own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further learnings came at a meeting with Granular where CBH found out about how cloud computing and big data analytics can help growers better manage resources in order to increase yields and profits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

So far, so innovative. But the best, as they say, was yet to come. It wasn\u2019t until the fifth and final day of the tour that CBH met Blue River Technology, a startup which proved to be the most inspiring of all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The appeal was in the marriage of computer vision and artificial intelligence: Blue River Technology\u2019s smart machines not only independently spray crops with herbicides to eliminate weeds, they also analyze each plant in a field to determine exactly what chemicals are needed where and in what quantities. Using this approach the startup is hoping it can do some good for the world by tackling herbicide-resistant weeds, a growing challenge to agriculture globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/WS3JRydN9sQ\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately for CBH, Blue River Technology\u2019s work is currently focused on crops other than grain. But just the fact of seeing the pioneering work being done by the startup was enough to convince the Australian exporter once and for all that being more involved in the Silicon Valley scene is vital. The team realized that if CBH could be the one to discover the next revolutionary breakthrough in wheat and barley cultivation, the advantages to the business could be almost inconceivably large.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plug in and Play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since its visit with us to Silicon Valley, CBH has launched its own software platform and taken steps to significantly optimize its supply chain operations. Clearly, the company has fully taken to heart the need for innovation. No doubt it will soon be partnering with a growing list of startups and setting off on all manner of interesting ventures to discover the next big breakthrough in grain agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC we like to think we had a hand in driving all this activity.  We can\u2019t take all the credit of course, our function having been simply to help the CBH team understand not only the solutions technology offers today but also the answers it might be able to provide tomorrow, given the right investments. All we could do was offer a stimulus, with any further steps being CBH\u2019s to make, and make alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

Search

Latest

\n

The largest provider in the United States of aerial imagery-as-a-service for agriculture is TerrAvion. TNT heard from their National Director of Sales and Business Development on how the company\u2019s core service, OverView, is managing and processing millions of acres of agricultural land every day. In short: 13-15 times each season, a TerrAvion fixed winged manned aircraft flies over a field and produces high resolution maps showing natural color, infrared, thermal, vegetation index, and more. These images are processed and delivered to farmers overnight, resulting in up-to-date maps that reflect attributes such as soil quality, plant growth variability, and vegetative area. Farmers can integrate this data into farm management or analytics software for an up-to-the-minute understanding of their crops and yield. And as TNT was happy to learn, TerrAvion is already operating successfully in Brazil and is just as excited about forging new partnerships as TNT themselves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ceres Imaging takes remote sensing technology a step further. Like TerrAvion, they specialize in aerial spectral imagery via low-flying planes. Where Ceres shines, explained their Vice President of Product to the TNT groups, is in the specialized software they\u2019ve developed to make sense of their multispectral images. Using proprietary image processing and crop modeling techniques, Ceres weaves together hundreds of overlapping frames into a seamless mosaic of field data. Their software can count every individual tree in an acre and has even pioneered a new technique for spectrally measuring plant transpiration \u2014 as verified by the University of California Cooperative Extension.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And Ceres\u2019 business model is as innovative as their tech: pay by the acre, or as they call it, Data as a Service (DaaS). Their scalable subscription model includes access to a team of on-demand scientists, agronomists, and hydrologists who can use the maps to help farmers improve crop management, efficiently apply fertilizer, optimize irrigation schedules, and more. This type of subscription access to technology has proved a killer business model for companies like streaming networks and car sharing services. That it\u2019s already making its way into agriculture is another sign of the industry\u2019s rapid shift to new technologies. The TNT groups were keen on exploring this new business model by partnering with Ceres once the company comes to Brazil.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Key takeaway from TerrAvion and Ceres Imaging: <\/strong>technological innovations pave the way for new services like aerial imaging and new business models like DaaS to enter the agricultural sector.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Executives from TNT, one of the most experienced agribusiness tour operators in Brazil, hear from Ceres Imaging, a data as a service field imaging company.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Digger Deeper Into Data to Change the Way We Grow<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Collecting vast swaths of data is only as good as the actionable analysis that data can lead to. Enter general-purpose software: artificial intelligence and machine learning platforms that synthesize the terabytes of data produced by farming machines, remote sensors, and imaging services into meaningful insights. The TNT representatives visited companies like Trimble, Figure Eight, Granular, and the Farmers Business Network to better understand how agricultural data is being leveraged \u2014 both in specific cases and in aggregate \u2014 to yield better, stronger, faster-growing crops.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The TNT representatives saw this in action at Figure Eight, an enterprise-ready general purpose Machine Learning platform. An Account Executive at Figure Eight shared with the TNT groups the company\u2019s Human-in-the-Loop (HitL) model, which allows their employees to take any set of data \u2014 for example, months of aerial field imagery \u2014 and train a custom AI algorithm to process that data in a targeted way. That could mean automatically recognizing subtle problems in vegetation or almost anything else: tracking objects in videos, predicting maintenance for industrial machinery, categorizing products in eshops, creating intelligent chatbots, and so on ad infinitum. As the set of data grows \u2014 Figure Eight has already generated over 10 billion training labels \u2014 the power of machine learning for all their clients, in any context, grows with it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TNT saw the power of aggregated data firsthand at the headquarters of Farmers Business Network (FBN). FBN is an independent network of thousands of farmers who, by anonymously sharing their agronomic precision data, can unlock the analytical insight provided by over 8 million acres of American farmland. FBN\u2019s platform utilizes data science, machine learning, and billions of data points to democratically share objective, unbiased information throughout its network. This aggregated data helps farmers better understand their seed quality, soil fertility, crop values, and more. Though FBN hasn\u2019t yet extended to Brazil, its democratic aggregation model knows no geographical boundaries \u2014 and the TNT groups were curious about setting up similar programs and services in their own country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Key takeaway from Figure Eight and Farmers Business Network:<\/strong> in AgriTech as in other technologically disrupted industries, the aggregation and machine analysis of data is key to unlocking operational efficiencies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Companies<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Executives from TNT listen in during a presentation from TerrAvion, the largest provider in the United States of aerial imagery as a service for agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sunny Skies and Fertile Soils for TNT and AgriTech<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The emerging field of AgriTech is only the latest in a long line of traditional industries being disrupted by new technologies. As computer processing power continues to increase alongside the capability of artificial intelligence, it\u2019s inevitable that the resulting technologies \u2014 autonomous machinery, remote sensor subscription services, general-purpose data aggregation and analysis platforms \u2014 begin to take root in businesses everywhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TNT, sensing these changes on the horizon of the agriculture industry, came to SVIC thrice over to understand the new technologies redefining their business. By meeting with the startups and technology companies leading the way in AgriTech, TNT took home valuable insight into how to grow their business for the future \u2014 as well as potential partnerships in TerrAvion and Ceres Imaging. For TNT, the field of AgriTech is ripe for the picking. They\u2019re ready to harvest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Want to take a deep dive into the technological disruption sweeping through your own industry? SVIC has custom immersion programs tailored to every level of management and sector of the economy.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Click here to learn more.<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n","post_title":"TNT Reaps AgriTech Innovations from Silicon Valley Companies","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":760,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-04-17 15:00:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-04-17 22:00:00","post_content":"\n

Silicon Valley is undoubtedly a place where any company can find innovative, technology-driven solutions to its thorniest problems. That is just as true for enterprises from the agricultural sector as from anywhere else, although the tech mecca has traditionally not been associated with breakthroughs in farming in the same way it has for many other industries; transport (Uber, Tesla), travel (Airbnb) and e-commerce (Amazon, eBay) being perhaps among the most notable examples.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet for CBH<\/a>, Australia\u2019s biggest exporter of grain, a trip to Silicon Valley turned out to be hugely worthwhile. The organization had approached us at the Silicon Valley Innovation Center on the back of a positive recommendation from compatriots at Bank of Queensland (the financial institution took one of our tours not long ago). That was something which generated a certain amount of expectation on the client side and, therefore, a greater-than-usual amount of pressure on us to deliver.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We were, of course, unfazed by this. That said, the recent explosion of interest in bitcoin and the general rise in awareness globally of the influence of FinTech as an offshoot of the financial services sector meant that when it came to Bank of Queensland\u2019s tour, we were able to take for granted that the company\u2019s executives already had a reasonable understanding of what they were getting themselves into before they set foot in Northern California.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With CBH, however, we could not make any such assumptions. Unlike FinTech and its rising superstars (see Stripe and Coinbase<\/a>, among others) the world of AgriTech is somewhat more obscure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/zWnWL-wEJgs\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What the team from Australia certainly did know was where it was falling short; namely, a lack of collaboration with the startup ecosystem, a supply chain in need of digitization and a dearth of high-tech solutions to offer its clients, the majority of whom are farmers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC, we took our usual course of action: we studied the list of CBH\u2019s problems or \u201cpain points\u201d as we like to call them, and custom-designed a tour of Silicon Valley. The goal was to connect the grain exporter with some of AgriTech\u2019s hottest startups and introduce it to the core principles of corporate innovative as they are being practiced today by leading companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CBH\u2019s program was five days long. Here are the highlights:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Startup Engagement<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One of our specialties at SVIC is bridging the gap between corporates and early stage enterprises. Although seemingly inherently opposed to one another, the two classes of business are in many ways a natural fit. Where corporations have the money and the client base startups crave, startups have the innovative ideas and tech-savvy personnel so often needed at big companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That characterization is something of a stereotype but it proved to hold true for CBH. That was why we introduced the company to Planet, a startup building and operating satellites to collect data and imagery on the Earth\u2019s landmass. The application of such technology to agriculture and the advantages it can bring to farmers were immediately clear to CBH, which was eager to adopt Planet\u2019s approach for a platform of its own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further learnings came at a meeting with Granular where CBH found out about how cloud computing and big data analytics can help growers better manage resources in order to increase yields and profits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

So far, so innovative. But the best, as they say, was yet to come. It wasn\u2019t until the fifth and final day of the tour that CBH met Blue River Technology, a startup which proved to be the most inspiring of all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The appeal was in the marriage of computer vision and artificial intelligence: Blue River Technology\u2019s smart machines not only independently spray crops with herbicides to eliminate weeds, they also analyze each plant in a field to determine exactly what chemicals are needed where and in what quantities. Using this approach the startup is hoping it can do some good for the world by tackling herbicide-resistant weeds, a growing challenge to agriculture globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/WS3JRydN9sQ\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately for CBH, Blue River Technology\u2019s work is currently focused on crops other than grain. But just the fact of seeing the pioneering work being done by the startup was enough to convince the Australian exporter once and for all that being more involved in the Silicon Valley scene is vital. The team realized that if CBH could be the one to discover the next revolutionary breakthrough in wheat and barley cultivation, the advantages to the business could be almost inconceivably large.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plug in and Play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since its visit with us to Silicon Valley, CBH has launched its own software platform and taken steps to significantly optimize its supply chain operations. Clearly, the company has fully taken to heart the need for innovation. No doubt it will soon be partnering with a growing list of startups and setting off on all manner of interesting ventures to discover the next big breakthrough in grain agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC we like to think we had a hand in driving all this activity.  We can\u2019t take all the credit of course, our function having been simply to help the CBH team understand not only the solutions technology offers today but also the answers it might be able to provide tomorrow, given the right investments. All we could do was offer a stimulus, with any further steps being CBH\u2019s to make, and make alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

Search

Latest

\n

The most immediate technological innovations in agriculture are those that address the immense labor required to bring a crop from seed to shelves \u2014 tilling, planting, watering, plucking, washing, and the like. Farming is, after all, a physical business. We\u2019ve written before about how companies like John Deere, Blue River, and Naio Technologies are bringing automation and cloud computing to the hulking machinery plowing modern fields. And while the TNT groups visited companies like Tesla that are helping to drive innovations in autonomous vehicles, the delegates were most interested to learn about a loftier technology: aerial imaging.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The largest provider in the United States of aerial imagery-as-a-service for agriculture is TerrAvion. TNT heard from their National Director of Sales and Business Development on how the company\u2019s core service, OverView, is managing and processing millions of acres of agricultural land every day. In short: 13-15 times each season, a TerrAvion fixed winged manned aircraft flies over a field and produces high resolution maps showing natural color, infrared, thermal, vegetation index, and more. These images are processed and delivered to farmers overnight, resulting in up-to-date maps that reflect attributes such as soil quality, plant growth variability, and vegetative area. Farmers can integrate this data into farm management or analytics software for an up-to-the-minute understanding of their crops and yield. And as TNT was happy to learn, TerrAvion is already operating successfully in Brazil and is just as excited about forging new partnerships as TNT themselves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ceres Imaging takes remote sensing technology a step further. Like TerrAvion, they specialize in aerial spectral imagery via low-flying planes. Where Ceres shines, explained their Vice President of Product to the TNT groups, is in the specialized software they\u2019ve developed to make sense of their multispectral images. Using proprietary image processing and crop modeling techniques, Ceres weaves together hundreds of overlapping frames into a seamless mosaic of field data. Their software can count every individual tree in an acre and has even pioneered a new technique for spectrally measuring plant transpiration \u2014 as verified by the University of California Cooperative Extension.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And Ceres\u2019 business model is as innovative as their tech: pay by the acre, or as they call it, Data as a Service (DaaS). Their scalable subscription model includes access to a team of on-demand scientists, agronomists, and hydrologists who can use the maps to help farmers improve crop management, efficiently apply fertilizer, optimize irrigation schedules, and more. This type of subscription access to technology has proved a killer business model for companies like streaming networks and car sharing services. That it\u2019s already making its way into agriculture is another sign of the industry\u2019s rapid shift to new technologies. The TNT groups were keen on exploring this new business model by partnering with Ceres once the company comes to Brazil.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Key takeaway from TerrAvion and Ceres Imaging: <\/strong>technological innovations pave the way for new services like aerial imaging and new business models like DaaS to enter the agricultural sector.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Executives from TNT, one of the most experienced agribusiness tour operators in Brazil, hear from Ceres Imaging, a data as a service field imaging company.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Digger Deeper Into Data to Change the Way We Grow<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Collecting vast swaths of data is only as good as the actionable analysis that data can lead to. Enter general-purpose software: artificial intelligence and machine learning platforms that synthesize the terabytes of data produced by farming machines, remote sensors, and imaging services into meaningful insights. The TNT representatives visited companies like Trimble, Figure Eight, Granular, and the Farmers Business Network to better understand how agricultural data is being leveraged \u2014 both in specific cases and in aggregate \u2014 to yield better, stronger, faster-growing crops.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The TNT representatives saw this in action at Figure Eight, an enterprise-ready general purpose Machine Learning platform. An Account Executive at Figure Eight shared with the TNT groups the company\u2019s Human-in-the-Loop (HitL) model, which allows their employees to take any set of data \u2014 for example, months of aerial field imagery \u2014 and train a custom AI algorithm to process that data in a targeted way. That could mean automatically recognizing subtle problems in vegetation or almost anything else: tracking objects in videos, predicting maintenance for industrial machinery, categorizing products in eshops, creating intelligent chatbots, and so on ad infinitum. As the set of data grows \u2014 Figure Eight has already generated over 10 billion training labels \u2014 the power of machine learning for all their clients, in any context, grows with it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TNT saw the power of aggregated data firsthand at the headquarters of Farmers Business Network (FBN). FBN is an independent network of thousands of farmers who, by anonymously sharing their agronomic precision data, can unlock the analytical insight provided by over 8 million acres of American farmland. FBN\u2019s platform utilizes data science, machine learning, and billions of data points to democratically share objective, unbiased information throughout its network. This aggregated data helps farmers better understand their seed quality, soil fertility, crop values, and more. Though FBN hasn\u2019t yet extended to Brazil, its democratic aggregation model knows no geographical boundaries \u2014 and the TNT groups were curious about setting up similar programs and services in their own country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Key takeaway from Figure Eight and Farmers Business Network:<\/strong> in AgriTech as in other technologically disrupted industries, the aggregation and machine analysis of data is key to unlocking operational efficiencies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Companies<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Executives from TNT listen in during a presentation from TerrAvion, the largest provider in the United States of aerial imagery as a service for agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sunny Skies and Fertile Soils for TNT and AgriTech<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The emerging field of AgriTech is only the latest in a long line of traditional industries being disrupted by new technologies. As computer processing power continues to increase alongside the capability of artificial intelligence, it\u2019s inevitable that the resulting technologies \u2014 autonomous machinery, remote sensor subscription services, general-purpose data aggregation and analysis platforms \u2014 begin to take root in businesses everywhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TNT, sensing these changes on the horizon of the agriculture industry, came to SVIC thrice over to understand the new technologies redefining their business. By meeting with the startups and technology companies leading the way in AgriTech, TNT took home valuable insight into how to grow their business for the future \u2014 as well as potential partnerships in TerrAvion and Ceres Imaging. For TNT, the field of AgriTech is ripe for the picking. They\u2019re ready to harvest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Want to take a deep dive into the technological disruption sweeping through your own industry? SVIC has custom immersion programs tailored to every level of management and sector of the economy.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Click here to learn more.<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n","post_title":"TNT Reaps AgriTech Innovations from Silicon Valley Companies","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":760,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-04-17 15:00:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-04-17 22:00:00","post_content":"\n

Silicon Valley is undoubtedly a place where any company can find innovative, technology-driven solutions to its thorniest problems. That is just as true for enterprises from the agricultural sector as from anywhere else, although the tech mecca has traditionally not been associated with breakthroughs in farming in the same way it has for many other industries; transport (Uber, Tesla), travel (Airbnb) and e-commerce (Amazon, eBay) being perhaps among the most notable examples.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet for CBH<\/a>, Australia\u2019s biggest exporter of grain, a trip to Silicon Valley turned out to be hugely worthwhile. The organization had approached us at the Silicon Valley Innovation Center on the back of a positive recommendation from compatriots at Bank of Queensland (the financial institution took one of our tours not long ago). That was something which generated a certain amount of expectation on the client side and, therefore, a greater-than-usual amount of pressure on us to deliver.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We were, of course, unfazed by this. That said, the recent explosion of interest in bitcoin and the general rise in awareness globally of the influence of FinTech as an offshoot of the financial services sector meant that when it came to Bank of Queensland\u2019s tour, we were able to take for granted that the company\u2019s executives already had a reasonable understanding of what they were getting themselves into before they set foot in Northern California.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With CBH, however, we could not make any such assumptions. Unlike FinTech and its rising superstars (see Stripe and Coinbase<\/a>, among others) the world of AgriTech is somewhat more obscure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/zWnWL-wEJgs\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What the team from Australia certainly did know was where it was falling short; namely, a lack of collaboration with the startup ecosystem, a supply chain in need of digitization and a dearth of high-tech solutions to offer its clients, the majority of whom are farmers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC, we took our usual course of action: we studied the list of CBH\u2019s problems or \u201cpain points\u201d as we like to call them, and custom-designed a tour of Silicon Valley. The goal was to connect the grain exporter with some of AgriTech\u2019s hottest startups and introduce it to the core principles of corporate innovative as they are being practiced today by leading companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CBH\u2019s program was five days long. Here are the highlights:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Startup Engagement<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One of our specialties at SVIC is bridging the gap between corporates and early stage enterprises. Although seemingly inherently opposed to one another, the two classes of business are in many ways a natural fit. Where corporations have the money and the client base startups crave, startups have the innovative ideas and tech-savvy personnel so often needed at big companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That characterization is something of a stereotype but it proved to hold true for CBH. That was why we introduced the company to Planet, a startup building and operating satellites to collect data and imagery on the Earth\u2019s landmass. The application of such technology to agriculture and the advantages it can bring to farmers were immediately clear to CBH, which was eager to adopt Planet\u2019s approach for a platform of its own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further learnings came at a meeting with Granular where CBH found out about how cloud computing and big data analytics can help growers better manage resources in order to increase yields and profits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

So far, so innovative. But the best, as they say, was yet to come. It wasn\u2019t until the fifth and final day of the tour that CBH met Blue River Technology, a startup which proved to be the most inspiring of all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The appeal was in the marriage of computer vision and artificial intelligence: Blue River Technology\u2019s smart machines not only independently spray crops with herbicides to eliminate weeds, they also analyze each plant in a field to determine exactly what chemicals are needed where and in what quantities. Using this approach the startup is hoping it can do some good for the world by tackling herbicide-resistant weeds, a growing challenge to agriculture globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/WS3JRydN9sQ\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately for CBH, Blue River Technology\u2019s work is currently focused on crops other than grain. But just the fact of seeing the pioneering work being done by the startup was enough to convince the Australian exporter once and for all that being more involved in the Silicon Valley scene is vital. The team realized that if CBH could be the one to discover the next revolutionary breakthrough in wheat and barley cultivation, the advantages to the business could be almost inconceivably large.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plug in and Play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since its visit with us to Silicon Valley, CBH has launched its own software platform and taken steps to significantly optimize its supply chain operations. Clearly, the company has fully taken to heart the need for innovation. No doubt it will soon be partnering with a growing list of startups and setting off on all manner of interesting ventures to discover the next big breakthrough in grain agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC we like to think we had a hand in driving all this activity.  We can\u2019t take all the credit of course, our function having been simply to help the CBH team understand not only the solutions technology offers today but also the answers it might be able to provide tomorrow, given the right investments. All we could do was offer a stimulus, with any further steps being CBH\u2019s to make, and make alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

Search

Latest

\n

High Tech Sees the World Through New Eyes<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The most immediate technological innovations in agriculture are those that address the immense labor required to bring a crop from seed to shelves \u2014 tilling, planting, watering, plucking, washing, and the like. Farming is, after all, a physical business. We\u2019ve written before about how companies like John Deere, Blue River, and Naio Technologies are bringing automation and cloud computing to the hulking machinery plowing modern fields. And while the TNT groups visited companies like Tesla that are helping to drive innovations in autonomous vehicles, the delegates were most interested to learn about a loftier technology: aerial imaging.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The largest provider in the United States of aerial imagery-as-a-service for agriculture is TerrAvion. TNT heard from their National Director of Sales and Business Development on how the company\u2019s core service, OverView, is managing and processing millions of acres of agricultural land every day. In short: 13-15 times each season, a TerrAvion fixed winged manned aircraft flies over a field and produces high resolution maps showing natural color, infrared, thermal, vegetation index, and more. These images are processed and delivered to farmers overnight, resulting in up-to-date maps that reflect attributes such as soil quality, plant growth variability, and vegetative area. Farmers can integrate this data into farm management or analytics software for an up-to-the-minute understanding of their crops and yield. And as TNT was happy to learn, TerrAvion is already operating successfully in Brazil and is just as excited about forging new partnerships as TNT themselves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ceres Imaging takes remote sensing technology a step further. Like TerrAvion, they specialize in aerial spectral imagery via low-flying planes. Where Ceres shines, explained their Vice President of Product to the TNT groups, is in the specialized software they\u2019ve developed to make sense of their multispectral images. Using proprietary image processing and crop modeling techniques, Ceres weaves together hundreds of overlapping frames into a seamless mosaic of field data. Their software can count every individual tree in an acre and has even pioneered a new technique for spectrally measuring plant transpiration \u2014 as verified by the University of California Cooperative Extension.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And Ceres\u2019 business model is as innovative as their tech: pay by the acre, or as they call it, Data as a Service (DaaS). Their scalable subscription model includes access to a team of on-demand scientists, agronomists, and hydrologists who can use the maps to help farmers improve crop management, efficiently apply fertilizer, optimize irrigation schedules, and more. This type of subscription access to technology has proved a killer business model for companies like streaming networks and car sharing services. That it\u2019s already making its way into agriculture is another sign of the industry\u2019s rapid shift to new technologies. The TNT groups were keen on exploring this new business model by partnering with Ceres once the company comes to Brazil.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Key takeaway from TerrAvion and Ceres Imaging: <\/strong>technological innovations pave the way for new services like aerial imaging and new business models like DaaS to enter the agricultural sector.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Executives from TNT, one of the most experienced agribusiness tour operators in Brazil, hear from Ceres Imaging, a data as a service field imaging company.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Digger Deeper Into Data to Change the Way We Grow<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Collecting vast swaths of data is only as good as the actionable analysis that data can lead to. Enter general-purpose software: artificial intelligence and machine learning platforms that synthesize the terabytes of data produced by farming machines, remote sensors, and imaging services into meaningful insights. The TNT representatives visited companies like Trimble, Figure Eight, Granular, and the Farmers Business Network to better understand how agricultural data is being leveraged \u2014 both in specific cases and in aggregate \u2014 to yield better, stronger, faster-growing crops.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The TNT representatives saw this in action at Figure Eight, an enterprise-ready general purpose Machine Learning platform. An Account Executive at Figure Eight shared with the TNT groups the company\u2019s Human-in-the-Loop (HitL) model, which allows their employees to take any set of data \u2014 for example, months of aerial field imagery \u2014 and train a custom AI algorithm to process that data in a targeted way. That could mean automatically recognizing subtle problems in vegetation or almost anything else: tracking objects in videos, predicting maintenance for industrial machinery, categorizing products in eshops, creating intelligent chatbots, and so on ad infinitum. As the set of data grows \u2014 Figure Eight has already generated over 10 billion training labels \u2014 the power of machine learning for all their clients, in any context, grows with it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TNT saw the power of aggregated data firsthand at the headquarters of Farmers Business Network (FBN). FBN is an independent network of thousands of farmers who, by anonymously sharing their agronomic precision data, can unlock the analytical insight provided by over 8 million acres of American farmland. FBN\u2019s platform utilizes data science, machine learning, and billions of data points to democratically share objective, unbiased information throughout its network. This aggregated data helps farmers better understand their seed quality, soil fertility, crop values, and more. Though FBN hasn\u2019t yet extended to Brazil, its democratic aggregation model knows no geographical boundaries \u2014 and the TNT groups were curious about setting up similar programs and services in their own country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Key takeaway from Figure Eight and Farmers Business Network:<\/strong> in AgriTech as in other technologically disrupted industries, the aggregation and machine analysis of data is key to unlocking operational efficiencies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Companies<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Executives from TNT listen in during a presentation from TerrAvion, the largest provider in the United States of aerial imagery as a service for agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sunny Skies and Fertile Soils for TNT and AgriTech<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The emerging field of AgriTech is only the latest in a long line of traditional industries being disrupted by new technologies. As computer processing power continues to increase alongside the capability of artificial intelligence, it\u2019s inevitable that the resulting technologies \u2014 autonomous machinery, remote sensor subscription services, general-purpose data aggregation and analysis platforms \u2014 begin to take root in businesses everywhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TNT, sensing these changes on the horizon of the agriculture industry, came to SVIC thrice over to understand the new technologies redefining their business. By meeting with the startups and technology companies leading the way in AgriTech, TNT took home valuable insight into how to grow their business for the future \u2014 as well as potential partnerships in TerrAvion and Ceres Imaging. For TNT, the field of AgriTech is ripe for the picking. They\u2019re ready to harvest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Want to take a deep dive into the technological disruption sweeping through your own industry? SVIC has custom immersion programs tailored to every level of management and sector of the economy.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Click here to learn more.<\/strong><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n","post_title":"TNT Reaps AgriTech Innovations from Silicon Valley Companies","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/tnt-reaps-agritech-innovations-from-silicon-valley-companies\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":760,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-04-17 15:00:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-04-17 22:00:00","post_content":"\n

Silicon Valley is undoubtedly a place where any company can find innovative, technology-driven solutions to its thorniest problems. That is just as true for enterprises from the agricultural sector as from anywhere else, although the tech mecca has traditionally not been associated with breakthroughs in farming in the same way it has for many other industries; transport (Uber, Tesla), travel (Airbnb) and e-commerce (Amazon, eBay) being perhaps among the most notable examples.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet for CBH<\/a>, Australia\u2019s biggest exporter of grain, a trip to Silicon Valley turned out to be hugely worthwhile. The organization had approached us at the Silicon Valley Innovation Center on the back of a positive recommendation from compatriots at Bank of Queensland (the financial institution took one of our tours not long ago). That was something which generated a certain amount of expectation on the client side and, therefore, a greater-than-usual amount of pressure on us to deliver.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We were, of course, unfazed by this. That said, the recent explosion of interest in bitcoin and the general rise in awareness globally of the influence of FinTech as an offshoot of the financial services sector meant that when it came to Bank of Queensland\u2019s tour, we were able to take for granted that the company\u2019s executives already had a reasonable understanding of what they were getting themselves into before they set foot in Northern California.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With CBH, however, we could not make any such assumptions. Unlike FinTech and its rising superstars (see Stripe and Coinbase<\/a>, among others) the world of AgriTech is somewhat more obscure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/zWnWL-wEJgs\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

What the team from Australia certainly did know was where it was falling short; namely, a lack of collaboration with the startup ecosystem, a supply chain in need of digitization and a dearth of high-tech solutions to offer its clients, the majority of whom are farmers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC, we took our usual course of action: we studied the list of CBH\u2019s problems or \u201cpain points\u201d as we like to call them, and custom-designed a tour of Silicon Valley. The goal was to connect the grain exporter with some of AgriTech\u2019s hottest startups and introduce it to the core principles of corporate innovative as they are being practiced today by leading companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CBH\u2019s program was five days long. Here are the highlights:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Startup Engagement<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

One of our specialties at SVIC is bridging the gap between corporates and early stage enterprises. Although seemingly inherently opposed to one another, the two classes of business are in many ways a natural fit. Where corporations have the money and the client base startups crave, startups have the innovative ideas and tech-savvy personnel so often needed at big companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That characterization is something of a stereotype but it proved to hold true for CBH. That was why we introduced the company to Planet, a startup building and operating satellites to collect data and imagery on the Earth\u2019s landmass. The application of such technology to agriculture and the advantages it can bring to farmers were immediately clear to CBH, which was eager to adopt Planet\u2019s approach for a platform of its own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Further learnings came at a meeting with Granular where CBH found out about how cloud computing and big data analytics can help growers better manage resources in order to increase yields and profits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

So far, so innovative. But the best, as they say, was yet to come. It wasn\u2019t until the fifth and final day of the tour that CBH met Blue River Technology, a startup which proved to be the most inspiring of all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The appeal was in the marriage of computer vision and artificial intelligence: Blue River Technology\u2019s smart machines not only independently spray crops with herbicides to eliminate weeds, they also analyze each plant in a field to determine exactly what chemicals are needed where and in what quantities. Using this approach the startup is hoping it can do some good for the world by tackling herbicide-resistant weeds, a growing challenge to agriculture globally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/WS3JRydN9sQ\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately for CBH, Blue River Technology\u2019s work is currently focused on crops other than grain. But just the fact of seeing the pioneering work being done by the startup was enough to convince the Australian exporter once and for all that being more involved in the Silicon Valley scene is vital. The team realized that if CBH could be the one to discover the next revolutionary breakthrough in wheat and barley cultivation, the advantages to the business could be almost inconceivably large.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plug in and Play<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Since its visit with us to Silicon Valley, CBH has launched its own software platform and taken steps to significantly optimize its supply chain operations. Clearly, the company has fully taken to heart the need for innovation. No doubt it will soon be partnering with a growing list of startups and setting off on all manner of interesting ventures to discover the next big breakthrough in grain agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At SVIC we like to think we had a hand in driving all this activity.  We can\u2019t take all the credit of course, our function having been simply to help the CBH team understand not only the solutions technology offers today but also the answers it might be able to provide tomorrow, given the right investments. All we could do was offer a stimulus, with any further steps being CBH\u2019s to make, and make alone.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Yet fulfilling our role meant more than just introducing the grain exporter to startups. We also took it to meetings at big companies which have nothing to do with agriculture like Google and Mercedes Benz; we connected it to innovation hubs like Rocketspace and The Vault; we helped it make links with venture capital firms like Mohr Davidow and Naiss. This was all in service of putting CBH on the path toward greater corporate innovation by showing the Australian company how the process works from all angles and how it is being practiced today by some of the world\u2019s leading organizations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new knowledge and networks CBH acquired during its time in Silicon Valley has put the company in a position from which it can genuinely look at new technologies as fertile grounds of opportunity and not as threats. That represents a radical change of perspective and is a mindset which most large enterprises find it difficult to adopt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Silicon Valley, however, the status quo has always been seen as something in need of disruption, with technology the principal means of making that happen. That\u2019s why the tech hub is an endlessly fascinating place to be; we know it and now that CBH knows it too, we expect they\u2019ll be back very soon.<\/p>\n","post_title":"Fertile Plains of Innovation: Discovering AgriTech in Silicon Valley","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/fertile-plains-of-innovation-discovering-agritech-in-silicon-valley\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"},{"ID":816,"post_author":"1","post_date":"2018-01-27 00:14:00","post_date_gmt":"2018-01-27 08:14:00","post_content":"\n

See the main Disruptive Technologies that fall under the AgTech umbrella.<\/p>\n","post_title":"The Technology Backbone of AgTech","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"the-technology-backbone-of-agtech","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2019-12-27 20:45:15","post_modified_gmt":"2019-12-28 04:45:15","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/siliconvalley.center\/blog\/the-technology-backbone-of-agtech\/","menu_order":0,"post_type":"post","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"next":false,"prev":false,"total_page":1},"paged":1,"column_class":"jeg_col_2o3","class":"epic_block_5"};

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