Topcon and IBM Developing AI for Agriculture

Topcon Agriculture and IBM announce a partnership to develop artificial intelligence dedicated to IT agriculture. The agreement was signed Monday, June 24 at the opening of the Italian IBM Garage in Milan, with the goal to develop software for agriculture that integrates the use of artificial intelligence and brings an evolution to all the phases of the farming cycle. 

Fabio Isaia, CEO of Topcon Agriculture, joined in the IBM Garage opening and spoke about the collaboration. He explained how a multidisciplinary group of IBM Garage experts will work closely with Topcon Agriculture to make artificial intelligence a fundamental part of all agricultural processes with the new Topcon Agricultural Platform (TAP). Isaia said integrating artificial intelligence and Ag-dedicated software into TAP will enable relevant and actionable advice to further optimize operations. 

“The innovative approach we are following using IBM Watson is bringing together software architects, engineers, designers, software developers and data scientists who are working closely with our team of agronomists and precision agriculture experts,” said Isaia. “I am looking forward to see the outcome of this joint effort in the fields. We believe TAP will be a great asset for every farmer seeking for further optimization of his business.”

TAP is designed to provide a digitized and open farming ecosystem with the goal of maximizing crop productivity while minimizing the use of resources; ensuring greater sustainability, crop quality and complete traceability of food, from the field to the table.