Illinois Report Highlights Role of AI in Future Farming

By Andi Anderson

The future of agriculture is expected to be highly digital, according to a recent report from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Researchers believe artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, and smart data tools can support farming in becoming more efficient, productive, and sustainable.

Led by Professor Vikram Adve, the report outlines how AI technologies can help farmers reduce labor, make better decisions, and manage both crops and livestock with greater accuracy. Adve says agriculture must evolve quickly to meet the rising demand for food while facing limited land, labor shortages, and climate change.

One example includes developing crops that need less nitrogen, which reduces the use of fertilizers. This helps lower costs for farmers and lessens environmental damage from fertilizer runoff. Adve says tools like sensors and robotics also allow farmers to make smarter, faster, and more sustainable farming decisions.

This research is being tested on an 80-acre site called I-FARM, where digital farming methods are applied to crops and livestock. The project is part of the AIFARMS Institute, which focuses on using AI for agricultural resilience and sustainability.

Farmers like Jeff Kirwan from New Windsor, Illinois, are already using technology on their large farms. Kirwan says that AI can help predict problems and improve productivity during the short windows of time farmers have to work. He believes technology is key to farming more acres effectively and sustainably.

Engineer Zeke Lundstrum also believes that technology should be accessible to everyday farmers. He says tools like computer vision are already helping reduce chemical use, showing how AI can support both environmental goals and profitability.

Together, researchers and farmers agree—technology is the future of farming.

Photo Credit: istock-dusanpetkovic