Local agritech startup Cropsy Technologies has successfully completed its first capital raise, with the award-winning company raising $1.5 million in an over-subscribed round. This will enable Cropsy to commercialise its world first AI-enabled crop vision system.
Cropsy combines mobile, continuous and GPS-tracked high-definition image capture, with AI-enabled software to analyse crops and aid decision making for growers.
The technology enables growers to identify pests and diseases early, for targeted spraying and reduced crop loss, as well as efficiently understanding crop growth and saving time for vineyard and orchard managers. It will boost sustainability goals for growers by ensuring resources are not applied when not needed.
Attached to a tractor and powered by the tractor battery, the system sees and understands every single plant while a grower runs their daily crop operations, profiling every leaf, fruit, shoot, cane, and trunk in real-time as the tractor passes by.
“There’s nothing better than seeing our system out there in the field, and creating tech that will be accessible to every grower,” says Cropsy’s Leila Deljkovic who met Ali Alomari, as engineering students at Auckland University. They were then joined by fellow co-founders Rory Buchanan and Winston Su.
Ali says it is humbling to be backed by New Zealand’s finest in AgTech, and their innovative, early-adopter customers who they couldn’t do their work without.
“This capital injection enables us to reach our goal of looking after 10 million vines by the end of 2023,” says Ali.
Initially focussed on grapevines, Cropsy will expand into apples and oranges.