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Google's X spins out Heritable Agriculture, a startup using AI to improve crop yield

Google’s X spins out Heritable Agriculture, a startup using AI to improve crop yield

Heritable Agriculture: Revolutionizing Crop Production with AI

In a groundbreaking development, Google’s X, often referred to as the “moonshot factory,” has announced the graduation of its latest innovative venture, Heritable Agriculture. This startup is set to transform the agricultural landscape by leveraging data and machine learning to enhance crop growth. Heritable Agriculture is poised to address some of the most pressing challenges in agriculture today, using cutting-edge technology to optimize plant growth and sustainability.

The Vision Behind Heritable Agriculture

Heritable Agriculture, as highlighted in their announcement post, views plants as remarkable systems. They describe plants as “solar powered, carbon negative, self-assembling machines that feed on sunlight and water.” Despite their efficiency, the agricultural sector is a significant contributor to environmental issues, accounting for approximately 25% of anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions. It is also the largest consumer of groundwater and a source of soil erosion and water pollution due to the use of pesticides, fertilizers, and other chemicals.

The startup aims to tackle these global challenges by doing what Google excels at: analyzing vast datasets through artificial intelligence and machine learning. While data collection is relatively straightforward, the real challenge lies in converting this data into actionable insights for growers, thereby modernizing the 12,000-year-old agricultural industry.

The Genesis of Heritable Agriculture

The inception of Heritable Agriculture can be traced back to its founder and CEO, Brad Zamft. With a PhD in physics, Zamft has an impressive background, having served as a program officer and fellow at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. He also spent time as the chief scientific officer at TL Biolabs, a venture-backed startup. In late 2018, Zamft joined Google X, where he quickly rose to become the project lead for what would eventually become Heritable Agriculture.

“I was given broad purview to work on whatever I wanted, as long as it could scale to a Google-size business,” Zamft shared with TechCrunch. “That was the mandate. The idea of how do we get better at optimizing plants stuck with me and it gained traction with the leadership. We did a very good job moving through the gauntlet that is Google X.”

Harnessing Machine Learning for Agricultural Innovation

Heritable Agriculture employs machine learning to analyze plant genomes, identifying combinations that could enhance yields, reduce water consumption, and increase carbon storage capacity. The company has developed models that have been tested on thousands of plants, grown according to these specifications in a “specialized growth chamber” at X’s Bay Area headquarters. Additionally, fieldwork has been conducted at various sites in California, Nebraska, and Wisconsin.

Interestingly, the company has no plans to explore mutagenesis, a GMO process that uses chemicals or radiation to create crop mutations. However, Zamft notes that CRISPR-fueled gene editing may eventually play a role in making plants “programmable.” For now, Heritable is focused on more traditional methods.

“We’re not developing gene-edited plants, and genetic modification is not on our roadmap,” Zamft stated. “Gene editing may eventually come, but we’re seeing a huge, unmet need for identifying what to breed and then doing better breeding — crossing a mother and father plant, not using the biotechnology to actually develop the [crop].”

Commercialization and Future Prospects

The immediate focus for Heritable Agriculture is the commercialization of its technology. While Zamft did not disclose specific timelines or commercial partners, he did mention that the company has successfully raised a seed round. This round includes investments from FTW Ventures, Mythos Ventures, and SVG Ventures, with Google also holding an undisclosed amount of equity in the company.

Google’s decision to spin off Heritable Agriculture comes in the wake of company-wide layoffs at X last January. Under the leadership of lab head Astro Teller, the corporate incubator has been more aggressive in spinning off companies like Heritable.

Conclusion

Heritable Agriculture represents a significant step forward in the quest to make agriculture more sustainable and efficient. By harnessing the power of data and machine learning, the startup is poised to revolutionize how crops are grown, addressing some of the most critical environmental challenges of our time. As Heritable Agriculture moves towards commercialization, it will be fascinating to see how this innovative approach reshapes the agricultural industry.

Original source article rewritten by our AI can be read here.
Originally Written by: Brian Heater

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