Autonomous agriculture trends: SwarmFarm Robotics founder Andrew Bate on what to expect in 2023

Victor Hugo famously said: “There is nothing more powerful than an idea whose time has come.”

The signs are clear: it is time for autonomy on our farms. With every major equipment company making some type of move into this category, the debate has ceased to centre around “if” autonomy happens or “when” it is brought to market.

Those two questions are being so rapidly bypassed with every new entry into this space that the question today truly centres on “how” we will deliver this new method of farming. In fact, the question in the back of everyone’s mind goes something like this: is autonomy really a new farming system, or are we just getting rid of the driver? 

I believe that we do in fact need a new farming system — one that I am calling “Integrated Autonomy”. 

Integrated Autonomy is a different approach to autonomy on-farm that provides more than another driverless tractor or a niche robotics solution, our approach puts the needs of the farmer first and creates a technology ecosystem around them.

We have created a farm equipment platform that does not get rid of the farmer, it re-positions them to where they are most needed. 

And I believe in this so much that I am staking my career — and my family farm — on making it succeed.

Here’s why:

1. Integrated Autonomy puts more power in the hands of the producer: Farmers need to be in charge of the tools and machinery they depend on to run their businesses. In too many cases, the fact that 95% of farm equipment is made by three companies and an obsession with the way things have always been done has led us to a place where farmers wholly rely on other people to make their machines work. Integrated autonomy provides farmers with a new way to think about their equipment – as an additive tool that you can use to run your business, not a reductive piece of machinery that you can’t control.

2. Integrated Autonomy helps us to meet our stewardship goals: In 2018, 10% of the Australian cotton crop was reported as impacted by spray drift – resulting in an estimated $18 million in production loss. However, we know that preventing spray drift is completely within our reach. A study done in 2020 outlined four key behavioural pillars that would put an end to unintended spray drift – drive the recommended speed (under 20 km/h), spray when conditions are suitable, check for nearby crops and other sensitive areas, and maintain accurate records.
We believe that Integrated Autonomy on-farm has the ability to unlock the benefits of full-label compliance through systematic spray programs that shift the burden of that compliance from the farmer to the robot.

3. Integrated Autonomy helps us attract, engage, and retain the next generation in agriculture: With many farmers working well into their 70s with no prospect for retirement, we are faced with the ugly truth that there aren’t enough young people entering the field. In the United States alone, for each farmer under 35, there are six over the age of 65, and in Australia, we see a similar pattern. We envision a future where the most promising minds in technology are encouraged to turn toward solving the challenges faced by modern agriculture. We also see a future where there is no longer such a severe distinction between farmers and technologists, but rather a new class of farmer-technologists. Farmers who are wrapped in better farming systems than what they had available 10 years ago are pushing the boundaries of sustainable farming practices and creating resilient, vibrant, and strong rural communities around them.

This new class of professionals will have the tools, talent, and time to benefit from cutting-edge technology by plugging into autonomous networks built by the future leaders of this space.

Andrew Bate is the founder and CEO of autonomous ag-tech company SwarmFarm Robotics.