Artificial intelligence: working hard behind the scenes on Canadian farms

Ask a room full of farmers whether they’re using artificial intelligence (AI) and many would probably say “no.” Then ask who uses auto-steer, variable-rate fertilizer applications, robotic milking systems, yield maps or software that helps optimize finances and the answer changes.

The reality is that AI has been working behind the scenes on Canadian farms for years. Long before ChatGPT made AI part of everyday conversation, farmers were already using technology that could collect information, recognize patterns and support decision-making.

Technology is now evolving quickly, bringing new opportunities — and new questions — about where AI fits on the farm and whether or not farmers will be left behind if they don’t adopt these innovations.

“Many people think of AI as generative models like ChatGPT because that is the main tool they have been exposed to,” says Dr. Rozita Dara, professor in the School of Computer Science and director of the University of Guelph’s AI4Food initiative. “But, in reality, AI has been around for over 70 years.”