The future of agriculture is invisible (and digital)
Sensors, data, and algorithms are reshaping rural landscapes—though few have realized it.
The collective imagination still sees the farmer with hands in the soil. But today, alongside hoes and mud, there are also sensors, drones, and digital dashboards. Agriculture is changing shape – and this transformation often goes unnoticed.
Yet it's crucial to understand where a sector so essential to our lives is heading. We're inclined to think of agriculture as something tied to the past and tradition. But that’s a distorted view—and in this issue of the newsletter, we’ll try to challenge it.
This is a story about agriculture—but also about the future: a revolution that has already begun, even if not everyone has noticed. In other words, we’re talking about “agritech”: technology applied to the primary sector.
An Inevitable Scenario
Today’s agricultural revolution doesn’t stem from a technological whim, but from a concrete necessity. The world population is growing, while resources are shrinking. Arable land is decreasing, water is becoming scarce, and skilled labor is harder to find.
At the same time, food demand is rising—and will continue to rise. It’s estimated that by 2054, nearly 10 billion people will live on Earth. To feed them, agriculture will need to produce more with fewer resources.
That’s where data, artificial intelligence, sensors, predictive models, and renewable energy come in. It’s no longer just about shovels and seeds, but about connections, algorithms, and infrastructure.
This transformation is already underway. And it’s the key to making the entire agricultural sector more efficient, more resilient, and above all, more sustainable.
Large agricultural companies are now increasingly cutting-edge, driven by efficiency and profitability. The real challenge is to extend this transformation across the entire supply chain—engaging small local farms as well.
Invisible
Agriculture’s transformation is happening through tools that often go unseen. Underground sensors measure soil moisture. Drones fly over fields to monitor crop health. Algorithms, fed by weather forecasts and historical data, decide if and when to irrigate.
There are systems capable of detecting plant diseases early, using images processed by artificial intelligence. Technologies that allow for precise dosing of phytosanitary treatments, reducing waste and environmental impact. In many farms, data collection is continuous, powered by cameras, drones, satellites, and sensors.
Quietly, the field has become an intelligent system. And while the farmer’s hand remains essential, it’s now supported by interfaces, dashboards, alerts, and predictive systems. Farming is still hard work—but increasingly supported by an invisible network. Made of bits.
Beyond the Fields
When we think of agriculture, we picture soil, harvests, and end products. But what happens in the field is just the visible part of a much broader supply chain. A network of players who don’t sow or harvest, but are essential to enabling change.
Banks, for instance, play a crucial role. Many farms today don’t have certified financial statements or consistent reporting—but they can provide digital data: harvest volumes, crop performance, and goods movement. It’s a new—and often more accurate—way to assess the economic reliability of a business.
Insurance companies follow a similar logic. If a farmer uses sensors and digital tools to monitor climate conditions or crop status, it becomes easier to estimate the risk of damage and evaluate claims accurately.
Then there are energy operators, increasingly interested in agriculture. Farms have land suitable for agrivoltaic systems: elevated solar panels designed to coexist with crops.
Different Speeds
Not all farms are experiencing this transformation at the same pace. On one hand, there are large, structured companies; on the other, there’s a vast network of smaller farms, often less digitalized, with fewer resources and less time to explore new solutions.
In Italy, the average farm size is among the smallest in Europe—which makes it harder to adopt advanced technologies.
But there are ways to bridge the gap. One is the creation of scalable digital platforms. Another lies with industry associations, which can act as bridges between innovation and those who couldn’t access it on their own.
The Agriculture of the Future Can’t Leave Anyone Behind. Because sustainability—whether economic, environmental, or social—is never an individual matter. And ultimately, all of this affects what ends up on our plates.
2054
In 2054, agriculture will still involve soil, water, sunlight, and hard work. But it will also, and increasingly, be about data, interconnection, and automation. Technologies we now consider “advanced” will have become standard: sensors and drones will be as embedded in processes as tractors are today.
Fields will be cultivated using predictive algorithms, and probably even in previously unthinkable locations: underground, vertically, or in fully controlled indoor environments.
At the same time, there will be less room for improvisation. Farms will be larger, more structured, and more interdependent on technological and financial networks.
Food will speak of technology as much as it speaks of flavor. And to keep feeding us, agriculture will need to speak both languages.
This post was written in collaboration with Roberto Serra, Equity Partner at BIP.
An Algorithm Uncovers Australia’s Hidden Gold
The mining sector and the rare earth market are on the brink of a technological revolution. Following the discovery of one of the world’s largest copper deposits—identified by an algorithm—the phenomenon is repeating itself. As reported by TechCrunch, the start-up Earth AI has discovered deposits of copper, cobalt, and gold in parts of Australia previously deemed resource-poor for decades.
China Leads Global Solar Power Production: 64% of Global Output
2024 marks a record year for solar energy integration into power grids, according to the latest report released this Wednesday by IRENA (International Renewable Energy Agency). China is leading the trend, adding approximately 374 gigawatts of solar power to its grid—eight times more than the United States and five times more than Europe.
An Underwater Tunnel to Connect Denmark and Germany
A new project has been launched in southern Denmark along the Hamburg–Copenhagen route, as reported by the BBC. Valued at €7 billion, the plan includes an underwater tunnel crossing the Baltic Sea. Once completed, it will be the largest underwater tunnel in the world.
This podcast, hosted by Tim Hammerich, explores the people, companies, and ideas shaping the future of the agricultural industry.
Each week, it shares stories from farmers, founders, innovators, and investors on topics such as agritech, sustainability, resilience, and the future of food.
Our word for this post is Smart Farming
Smart farming is an agricultural model that integrates advanced digital technologies such as sensors, GPS, artificial intelligence, and predictive models to make farming more precise and efficient.
By continuously collecting and analyzing data—on factors like weather conditions, soil moisture, crop health, and resource needs—smart farming enables the optimization of every stage of production, from planting to harvest, all the way through to distribution.
This evolution is particularly interesting because it transforms fieldwork into a data-driven activity, where decisions are no longer based solely on the farmer’s experience and intuition, but also on analytical models and detailed forecasts.
The result is a more resilient agriculture, better equipped to respond to global challenges such as climate change and resource scarcity.
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