Bonsai Robotics Acquires farm-ng
Bonsai Robotics Inc. (“Bonsai”), a leader in vision-based autonomy software for agriculture, today announced its acquisition of farm-ng Inc., a pioneer in modular electric robots for farm management. This brings together two of agtech’s most advanced and innovative companies to deliver powerful AI solutions that tackle the labor, cost, and efficiency challenges growers face today.
The integration of Bonsai’s high-performance autonomous AI technology with farm-ng’s customizable robotic platform allows for a revolutionary offering of AI-first machines that will transform crop management. This powerful combination of intelligent software and advanced robotic hardware enables cost-effective, mixed-fleet solutions that boost efficiency and reduce operational costs across diverse crops, tasks, and environments.
“To date, our vision has been to make autonomy and AI accessible, easy to use, and deployable across all farm equipment whether retrofitted onto existing tractors or built into the next generation machine,” said Tyler Niday, CEO and co-founder of Bonsai Robotics. “This acquisition allows us to now develop those next generation machines to augment and empower today’s workforce while optimizing farm productivity. We are shifting the industry from iron to intelligence.”
Joining the Bonsai team in connection with the acquisition are Chief Operating Officer, John Teeple, former director of technology at John Deere, and Gary Bradski, a key figure in the evolution of computer vision and founder of OpenCV, as Chief Science Officer.
Financial terms of this acquisition were not disclosed.
Learn more in this interview with CEO Tyler Niday.
Tyler Niday, Bonsai Robotics (8:38)
Yara North America Appoints Sabine Schröder as President
Yara North America is pleased to announce the appointment of Sabine Schröder to President, overseeing the U.S. and Canada business, effective immediately. Schröder, who has made significant contributions over 18 years with Yara, has served as interim President of North America since January 2025. Previously, she served as Vice President of Commercial Excellence for Crop Nutrition in the Americas. She also brings extensive global leadership experience, having held the positions of Commercial Director for Europe’s NOxCare business and Global Sales Excellence Manager.
In tandem with this appointment, two strategic commercial leadership roles have been formed to strengthen customer support and regional focus across the U.S.:
• George Simpson has been selected as Director of East U.S. Sales & Marketing. With over 23 years at Yara, Simpson has most recently led the Mid-Atlantic team and will continue supporting the region during the transition.
• Dan Clarke has been selected as Director of West U.S. Sales & Marketing. With 19 years at Yara, Clarke began as a Technical Sales Representative in Canada and most recently led the Central U.S. team, which he will continue supporting during the transition.
Additionally, Jeff Hartz joins Yara North America’s leadership team as Vice President of Strategic Marketing. Most recently serving as Director of Go to Market Strategy & Enablement for Yara Americas, Hartz brings over two decades of expertise spanning seeds, crop protection, ag finance, and food production.
GreenPoint CEO Keynotes Tech Hub LIVE
Jeff Blair has been President and Chief Executive Officer of GreenPoint Ag Holdings, a joint venture in the wholesale and retail operations of proven agronomy leaders in the southern United States. His keynote at Tech Hub LIVE Tuesday focused on how the ag tech industry can adapt and advance beyond the headwinds of today’s current tough conditions.
One of his points was to utilize data better. “What I hope you take away from this is that when we talk about technology and I think this really relates to agriculture, you have to understand we talk about data all the time,” said Blair. “And the good news in today’s world, we’re getting more and more things that can take data and turn it into information. But you then have to take information and put it in context to drive intelligence, and it is that intelligence which drives decisions.”
Listen to Blair’s remarks here:
2025 THL Keynote Jeff Blair, GreenPoint Ag (46:45)
Animal Ag News 7/23
Ag Tech Excellence Awards Presented
L-R: Grace Pan, Awards sponsor Carlton Fields; award winners Dr. Jon Bokmeyer, April Hemmes, Dr. John Fulton, Craig Rupp, Aman Anand, and Lara Sowinski, CropLife Group
A new award was added this year – the Emerging Leader Award – and it was presented to Aman Anand, Senior Leader, Nutrien Ag Solutions. With over 20 years of experience spanning Fortune 100 companies, agrochemicals, land-grant universities, and global sustainability initiatives like the World Bank, Anand has a proven track record in scaling ag innovation and has integrated 60+ startups into Nutrien’s Echelon platform. Anand’s beautiful wife and young children were on-hand to see him honored.
Listen to an interview with Anand:
2025 Ag Tech Award winner Aman Anand (6:16)
The 2025 Innovator Award was presented to Craig Rupp, founder and CEO of Sabanto. Rupp was raised on an Iowa farm and has over 30 years of experience in engineering, product development, and agriculture. Among his accomplishments are founding six startups, receiving 14 Patents, and being a Monsanto Senior Fellow, focusing on advanced research and development in areas like agriculture and biotechnology.
Ohio State University professor Dr. John Fulton, Professor, was the recipient of this year’s Legacy Award for his more than 30 years pioneering precision ag leadership, including serving as President of the International Society of Precision Agriculture (ISPA). Dr. Fulton has guided 33 MS, 12 PhD students, 6 international scholars, and 43 undergraduates. He also provides guidance to the leadership of six retailers and independent consultants annually.
The Visionary Farmer Award this year goes to fourth-generation Iowa farmer and rancher Iowa farmer April Hemmes who has operated her family’s 1,000-acre century farm for nearly 40 years. A champion for women in agriculture, Hemmes helped develop and served as the first president of Iowa Women in Agriculture and creator of multiple grant-funded initiatives. She is a global agricultural ambassador, an award-winning advocate and communicator and an ag policy and leadership voice for many commodity organizations on the national and state level.
The final award presented Tuesday was the Educator/Researcher Award presented to Dr. Jon Bokmeyer, now Beck’s Hybrids research manager and just recently concluding five years with Advanced Agrilytics. Bokmeyer is the inventor of two granted patents – Variety Profile Index (VPI) and a corn growth efficiency system and his tools and methodologies are used across thousands of acres, shaping seed, chemical, and equipment decisions in real-world environments. He also leads high-quality field trials that integrate seed, chemistry, and equipment with spatial variability.
Learn more about Dr. Bokmeyer in this interview.
2025 Ag Tech Award winner Jon Bokmeyer (1:49)
MyLand Expands Washington Soil Health Initiative with $2.4M in New Funding
MyLand, a leading innovator in soil health, today announced a $2.4 million expansion to bring its Soil as a Service™ to more farms across Washington State. Through this effort, MyLand aims to help growers strengthen soil health, build climate resilience, and adopt sustainable practices at scale.
The expansion builds on a $4.8 million program launched earlier this year in collaboration with the Washington State Department of Agriculture and Department of Commerce. Funded through the state’s Climate Commitment Act (CCA), the investment is expected to bring MyLand’s Service to 9,000 acres across the state, offering farmers access to transformative soil health technology.
With the additional funding, MyLand will increase the program’s acreage to bring the benefits of live, native microalgae to more farms across Washington. MyLand’s Service delivers measurable improvements like stronger yields, higher quality crops, more resilient farms, and improved water efficiency.
“This additional investment allows us to deepen our impact and bring sustainable tools to more growers across Washington,” said Dane Hague, Co-Founder and CEO of MyLand. “Washington is demonstrating what it means to lead in sustainable agriculture. This is evident not just in policy, but in real, boots-on-the-ground solutions that benefit farmers and the environment alike.”
Eligible growers will receive the MyLand Service at no cost for the first year. MyLand is actively accepting new growers across Washington and welcomes inquiries from interested farms.
“Healthy soil is one of the most powerful tools we have for improving farm performance and addressing climate shifts,” said Dave Booher, Senior Vice President of Sales at MyLand. “With this expansion, we’re bringing the benefits of better soil to more Washington farms, especially those most vulnerable to climate extremes.”
Women in Ag Tech Meet Again in Des Moines
The fourth in-person Women in AgTech (WiAT) was held on Monday July 21 prior to the start of the fifth annual Tech Hub LIVE in Des Moines. The half-day agenda was packed full of presentations, panels, and professional networking for women in the agricultural technology field.
Susan Olson, Action Intel
Listen to an interview with Olson:
2025 WiAT - Susan Olson, Action Intel (9:10)
A panel discussion with Tami Craig Schilling, Bayer Crop Science; UNL Quantitative Life Sciences Imitative Director Jennifer Clarke; and AIFARMS Executive Director Jessica Wedow, focused on A.I. developments in agriculture. Schilling talked about how Bayer developed the GenAI model called E.L.Y. (Expert Learning for You).
Sarah Canada, R&D Chief of Staff with Corteva, discussed her career path that involved moving from Research and Development to HR and back again, and how the company culture at Corteva encourages that kind of interdepartmental growth into new areas. Corteva is a major sponsor of WiAT and brought a big group to attend the conference.
Another big supporter of WiAT is Agri-Access, a division of Compeer Financial, where Kelly Miller is the Director of Fintech and Retail. She led a panel on how ag tech impacts farm credit and crop insurance with ag economist Megan Roberts with Compeer and Dawn Stoppelmoor of Farmers Mutual Hail.
Iowa farmer April Hemmes
Listen to my interview with April here:
2025 WiAT - April Hemmes, Iowa farmer (9:40)
Industry Ag News 7/18
Passing of Mike Perrine
I am sad to say that I just found out that one of my best farm radio friends, Mike Perrine, has passed. I have enjoyed every conversation and we’ve had some fun times together. Mike was a great listener and had a wonderful sense of humor. He will be seriously missed by so many people who have worked with him.
Back in 2015 he received the NAFB Dix Harper Meritorious Service Award at the NAFB convention in Kansas City. Mike was also received into NAFB Hall of Fame in 2023. You can see a great video that was played there.
Here’s a quote from the NAFB FB page: “Mike’s broadcast roots date back to 1959 and his career journey took him to many broadcast destinations, including WLDS, WJIL/WJVO, WKAN and AgriTalk (to name a few). He made an indelible impression on everyone who knew him. Mike joined NAFB in 1978 and served in numerous volunteer positions.”
Update: Service will be September 20 at the Troy Methodist Church in Troy, Illinois. Visitation from 10-11:30 with the service to follow immediately after. Memorials to the NAFB Foundation or the Troy Methodist Church.