Guided by AI or just simply using a sophisticated program?
They most likely use image recognition. So there’s a little NN there
I guess it must be programmed to recognise what a weed looks like to be able to identify it against what isn’t. Is that AI? I have no idea. Seems like everything at the moment is AI.
Most likely it is programmed to if the specific crop at all stages of development and eliminate everything else.
If it uses training and a model, and not just pre-defined parameters, then yes, it is a form of AI
Even pre defined parameters can be identified and set using an AI model. In fact I believe this is more likely than installing the AI model on the weed plucking device.
So yes AI. No, not an active AI model thinking while weeding.
Yeah, I say NOT AI.
I mean, pattern matching has been a thing for a long time, and getting more and more sophisticated, but slapping an AI label on a (albeit new and interesting) robot tractor seems unnecessary, and degrades the meaning of the term.
And don’t get me started on calling their crop ‘5G Onions’!
Laser weeder’s have been doing this for years. I don’t think AI has anything to do with it other than a marketing buzz words
“AI is everything a computer is bad at. The moment a computer can do it it’s no longer AI. That way there’s never any progress in AI.” … really old adage in computer science.
Guided by a fridge actually… everyone’s been so fixated with AI that we haven’t noticed how much smarter “smart” appliances have gotten.
My washer just did my taxes!
Since a sophisticated program in that case would be considerably harder to implement than a machine learning approach (what people generally mean when talking about AI): very likely AI
And without herbicides 👍
This is great for reducing how much exploitative labor is needed for food production. The problem for the future is who controls it, and what happens to the people it displaces?
AI has become a marketing buzz word. Farm field laser weeder’s have been around for years. It uses lasers to zap and kill the weeds. No need for robotic arms clattering away to pick them, and nothing mechanical to wear out.
Now if we could only apply this to those pesky humans.
I bet it identifies weeds very well, and then plucks them very poorly.
Round up lobbyists are running to the capital with bags of cash to stop this AI madness!
If you beat the AI in a game, however, it might pluck your arms from their sockets.
Does it also autoburn seeds not approved by Monsanto if you miss subscription payment?
Coool!!! Next lets get one where steel fingerss replace all ceos ☺️☺️☺️✨
I wanna see this side by side with the laser one
What is the benefit of this compared to the weeder that uses a laser?
Now make it work on saffron stigmas
Wow! Great question! That could significantly reduce the price.
Is that a problem in life? Saffron too pricey? :) The whole fun of it is that it’s pricey
More people would have access to more of it if more could be produced. And even at current prices, the producers who currently manually process it generally work thankless, fairly physically taxing and unrewarding jobs. There is clearly not enough value present for it to be produced manually at a fair price.
This process is obviously begging to be mechanized.
If spending money needlessly gives you a thrill would you like my Venmo account name?
I’m pretty sure a version of this that just burns the weeds using lasers already exists. Having some contraption to rip out the weeds to me seems a lot more complicated and therefore expensive, with also more moving parts that likely need repair more often. Would ripping out the weeds offer that much more benefit over just burning them to justify that additional cost? I assume ripped out weeds would stay away longer, since the roots are removed or damaged, but I don’t really know the economic impact of weeds on the harvest. Do we have any farmers in the room who could share some insight on this?
Actually ripping them out is simpler and more effective. Plants contain quite a lot of water and lasers are really not very efficient and effective in that use case.
Fire up the lawsuit machine, Martha. It’s time to cash in.