A Dog’s Year: AgriSciense's Journey Through 2024 and Beyond
- Sudip Sinha
- Jan 6
- 4 min read
Beginnings are the toughest.
As the new year dawns in 2025, I find myself reflecting on a year that was both defining and transformative for AgriSciense. The first quarter began on an optimistic note, a welcome reprieve from the fog of indecision that shrouded the last months of 2023. Yet what followed was a journey of persistence, vision, and unwavering determination.
AgriSciense represents more than just another venture; it embodies a second chance to craft a global enterprise with the crucial difference in ownership. Throughout 2024, our journey oscillated between exhilaration and challenge, demanding an ever-present optimism. Building confidence among family, customers, investors, and partners required immense mental fortitude and clear vision.
A Year in Review: AgriSciense’s Journey Through 2024
For AgriSciense, significant milestones and transformative progress marked the year. One of our primary goals was to create a unifying vision for AgriSciense–a vision that was ambitious, yet achievable, radical, yet grounded. Despite the hurdles of countries, time zones, private life, and remote work, we managed to build that vision and accomplished major targets, often exceeding the milestones set at the year's inception.
Milestones and Progress
Our field trials exemplified this success. What began as a modest 1-hectare target expanded to over 2,000 hectares, demonstrating both the scalability and robustness of our solutions and vital operational insights. These trials provided invaluable insights into user experience and farm-level challenges. A surprising and crucial revelation was that AgriSciense was solving for skilled labor availability rather than pest detection. This is particularly relevant given the global trend of an aging farmer population and underlines our technology driven approach to early pest detection. This led us to refine our Minimum Viable Product (MVP) objectives, aligning our technology with the real-world issues faced by farmers.
As our understanding of customer needs deepened, we refined our go-to-market (GTM) strategy and revenue model. Our concept of 'Sound Intelligence' evolved from a broad outline to a precise, actionable vision.
Weathering Challenges
The final quarter of 2024 brought personal challenges as Delhi's winter arrived with its accompanying pollution. This duo conspired against my health and six crucial weeks during November and December were impacted as the harsh combination of cold and smog took its toll. These experiences reinforced the urgency of our mission to develop sustainable farming solutions—methods that are both resilient to nature's caprices and mindful of environmental impact.
Despite these challenges, we made significant strides. Narendra's relocation from Singapore to India strengthened our team dynamics and partner collaborations. We successfully onboarded specialized teams for both hardware and software development, and secured interest from potential investors for the coming year.
No Full Stops in AgriSciense
The past two months have been anything but idle. Amidst the chill and haze, we have been engrossed in developing the Product Requirements Document (PRD) for Ranger V2. This document encapsulates our vision for a more sustainable and accessible farming future. Our ambitious goal is to reduce the Bill of Materials (BOM) by 60-70% compared to Ranger V1. Achieving this will not only enhance affordability but also significantly lessen our environmental footprint, testifying to our commitment to innovation and sustainability.
Simultaneously, we established our AI infrastructure and assembled a dedicated team for its management. Under Narendra’s watchful eyes and guidance, the team is undergoing comprehensive training in Machine Learning Operations (MLOps) and analytics, preparing to handle the real-time data flow from our IoT device network. The excitement is palpable as we equip ourselves with the necessary tools and knowledge to transform raw data into actionable insights, paving the way for smarter, more efficient agro-forestry.
Looking Ahead
Our immediate focus centers on the commercial release of Ranger V2, incorporating enhanced technical capabilities and rigorous testing protocols. We are optimizing our deep learning models, scripts, and data pipeline architecture to ensure seamless data collection, analysis, and distribution.
Simultaneously, we are recruiting farmers for our pilot program. We've already secured participation from couple of pioneering farmers in India and are actively seeking additional participants, particularly date palm farmers in the GCC and Middle East regions facing Red Palm Weevil (RPW) infestation. This pilot program is vital for gathering real-world feedback and refining our solutions to better meet users' needs, fostering a collaborative effort with the farming community to meet the challenge of RPW infestation.
Please email us at info@agrisciense.com if you would like to join the program.
Michchhāmi Dukkaḍaṃ
As we begin 2025, we extend heartfelt gratitude to family and friends—old and new—who have supported us with knowledge, advice, expertise, infrastructure, time, meal, and financial backing. We move forward, armed with knowledge, passion, and a shared determination to make a positive impact.
AgriSciense commits to sharing our technical insights and learnings with other deep-tech and agri startups tackling similar challenges. As we build practical applications of Generative AI, we look forward to collaborating with industry peers, learning from each other, and contributing to a more sustainable agricultural future.
References and notices
The top image is AI generated.
All slide decks, photos, and logos, including select phrases, are proprietary material of AgriSciense.
AgriSciense GitHub is live but currently set to private. Select access to partners and interested parties will be provided on request. Please reach out via website or info@agrisciense.com to request access.
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