06 Jan. 2022

Lack of land, too little clean water and too much C02 production are the main problems facing agriculture now and in the future. Iron Ox, an indoor farming company focused on using AI and robotics, has an agrisystem designed to solve all of these problems. The grow operations Iron Ox is currently expanding are much more sustainable than traditional agriculture — 90% less water use, 75% less energy required, much shorter distribution channels while producing nutrient rich produce on much less land.

AI and robotics drive the Iron Ox greenhouse and are responsible for the farm's efficiency. Sensors capture tons of data that is crunched to make sure that every plant gets optimal levels of water, nutrients and sunshine. Data harvested is made actionable by AI allowing Grover, Iron Ox's workhorse robot, to optimally manage the greenhouse by moving plant modules precisely where they need to be. This precision farming process down to each individual plant results in significantly less waste and tastier, healthier veggies. Iron Ox has built a continuous learning system that leverages AI to improve yield with each harvest. The greenhouse's ability to continuously adapt is an important advantage in the growing, competitive clean food market. An AI and robotics approach leads to greater yields that are more accurately predicted. Furthermore, the Iron Ox's system allows Grover to precisely maintain the greenhouse 24/7/365, resulting in faster growing times. Grover makes the greenhouse less dependent on unreliable labor markets that are projected to plaque traditional farming well into the future.

Brandon Alexander Iron Ox CEO & Co-Founder frames modern agriculture in terms of achieving food sustainability on a carbon neutral farm. "Humanity’s most important pursuit is to reverse global warming. To get there, we can’t settle for incrementally more sustainable agriculture or carbon-neutral farms. We won’t stop until the global agriculture sector is carbon negative,” Alexander said. Like many in the indoor and vertical farming industry, Iron Ox puts this ethos to practice in its clean farms that continuously improve over time. Private equity rounds have confirmed Iron Ox's mission and technology as the company has quietly raised $45 million in private equity. Leading the latest round was Pathbreaker Venture Fund, a firm known to invest in teams that have solved hard engineering problems.

In December of 2021, Iron Ox announced the addition of Phil, another robot to the greenhouse. Phil works in tandem with Grover by controlling each planting module's water, nutrient mix, and pH levels with precision. Phil and Grover working together will allow for even greater efficiency and enhanced production while improving product quality. The combination of Grover and Phil will allow Iron Ox to build a vast database on the closed-loop growing conditions on every plant it grows. This data will be a treasure trove of information for the plant scientists at Iron Ox.

A big question remains, how does Iron Ox plan on using its technology in the future? Does it stay in-house or is the intellectual property licensed out to other growers? The answer to this question will largely define what kind of company Iron Ox wants to be and whether farms of the future are run by an army of Grovers and Phils.

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