GEORGIA TECH ROBOTICIST FRANK DELLAERT JOINS VERDANT ROBOTICS Brings Spatial AI Know-How to Expand Application for Autonomous Agronomy
Hayward, CA
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August 18, 2022 09:00 AM Pacific Daylight Time
Dr. Frank Dellaert, recognized innovator in spatial artificial intelligence (AI) for autonomous vehicles, has joined Verdant Robotics as chief technology officer, effective immediately. In this position, Dellaert will lead the expansion of computer vision and robotics applications to deliver faster, more complex agronomic solutions to increase the productivity and sustainability of global agriculture.
Dellaert is recognized for using graphical model techniques to solve large-scale mapping and 4D reconstruction challenges in complex, dynamic environments. Most recently, he helped create technical solutions for Skydio, Facebook Reality Labs, and Google AI while on leave from the Georgia Institute of Technology, where he has been on the faculty for more than twenty years.
“At Verdant, we use robotic perception – Frank’s core skillset – to unlock superhuman farming, giving farmers and agronomists the opportunity to do things never possible before,” said Dr. Gabe Sibley, co-founder and CEO of Verdant Robotics, a seasoned roboticist credited with autonomous solutions for the space and automotive industries. “As we continue to push the boundaries of discovery, it became clear that Frank’s know-how and expertise expands our technical breadth so we can help growers achieve the next level of production at scale.”
Spatial AI, which infers the geometry of the world, along with deep learning are the underlying technologies that enable ag robots to distinguish a sprout from a weed or make other real-time agronomic decisions when working in a field. At the most basic level, autonomous ag robots must solve the ‘what’ and ‘where’ problems to ensure the accuracy of a specific task.
“Adding a preeminent innovator like Frank takes Verdant’s technical advantage in robotics and algorithm design to supercharged status,” said Dr. John Hamer, managing partner at DCVC Bio. “Focused on their broad vision for the digital transformation of agriculture, which is fundamentally enabled by spatial AI, Frank joins a technical team who either invented or built the technology in the first place.”
For the past two years, Verdant has continued to scale operations to meet demand for its robot-as-a-service (RaaS) offering to specialty crop growers. In addition to fleet deployment, Verdant continues to refine advanced algorithms for on-farm efficiency improvements, such as accuracy of input application by high-speed vehicles in unstructured environments.
“I am excited to join Verdant and help farmers gain access to the AI revolution that is improving many aspects of our society,” said Dellaert. “Bringing my experience, I look forward to helping Verdant leverage the state-of-the-art in computer vision and robotics to improve the overall sustainability of food production – for our planet and the billions of people who depend on farmers every day.”
About Verdant Robotics:
Together with growers, we are building sustainable, high-fidelity farming: spatially, temporally, and physically working the farm at a precision, accuracy, frequency and scale never before possible. At Verdant, we believe environmentally conscientious robotic farming is the future of agriculture. Our goal is to transform how food is grown while improving the lives of farmers, workers and rural communities. By digitizing the farm at sub-millimeter scale, indexing it, and taking actions that unlock new value, we are providing our customers with superhuman farming tools. To learn more, visit www.VerdantRobotics.com.
Contact Details
AgTech PR for Verdant Robotics
Jennifer Goldston
+1 816-260-0040
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