Qualcomm invests in digital farming
Prospera’s AI-based digital farming system collects, digitizes, and analyzes agricultural data to help growers control and optimize their production. The company, which was founded in 2014, says it plans to use the new funds to accelerate its global expansion – it currently has customers in three continents – and to broaden its services to include different crops in both indoor and outdoor environments.
“The shift [from indoors to outdoors] has huge implications as our system is now able to transform any existing farm, be it indoor or outdoor, into a digital plant,” Prospera CEO Daniel Koppel told AgFunderNews. “In the US specifically, with about 40% of US land being farmland, we’re very excited to be entering that market and helping those farmers transform and optimize the way their farms operate.”
The company’s camera and sensor system uses computer vision and data analytics to monitor and detect changes in crops by capturing at least half a million readings every day, and then send alerts to growers via multiple platforms. The system also provides yield predictions and can be used to “control and orchestrate” any number of farm workers.
“We have seen the agtech sector grow significantly in recent years as innovations in drone, satellite mapping, AI, and IoT have greatly enhanced the ability to improve crop yield and positively impact overall farm management,” Boaz Peer, Director at Qualcomm Ventures told AgFunderNews. “The primary drivers contributing to this growth include the affordability of sensors, wireless connectivity, and machine learning processing, both at the edge of the network and in the cloud. We believe the convergence of all of these elements is driving this trend and will positively impact the agtech sector, bringing forth greater efficiencies and improved ROI.”
Other investors in this funding round included Cisco Investments, ICV Partners, and existing investor Bessemer Venture Partners, who invested in the agtech startup in 2016. The latest funding brings the total investment in Prospera to $22 million.
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