African countries together spend $35 billion each year importing food. Now a Cape Town startup is trying to cut that bill by developing smart drones to help farmers boost their harvests.
About 60% of Africans live in rural areas, and those communities depend heavily on agriculture. The African Development Bank is investing $24 billion over the next 10 years to "jump start the transformation" of farming.
Boosting productivity and improving access to modern tools and land management information is vital, it says. And that's where Aerobotics comes in.
Founded by James Paterson, the young company is hoping to fix some of these pressing problems using artificial intelligence.
Paterson grew up on a fruit farm near Cape Town before graduating with a Masters in Aeronautics and Astronautics from MIT. In 2014, he started building drones in his garage with co-founder Benji Meltzer.
Their mission? To provide bird's eye surveillance for farmers, with the aim of optimizing crop yields and reducing costs. Aerobotics promises its clients that yields will increase by as much as 10%.
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