Session: Initial Software discussion

Open Ag Technology GOAT 2018
1

Day 1, Morning Session 1: Software

How to do SW for Ag

  • full stack
  • filling niches

Opportunities

  • Thinking about users

    • Other Developers
    • Farmers
    • closing gaps between existing APIs and what currently exists
    • Farm Labor
    • Farm abutters

  • A development “Failure”

    • Manuer App – uses GPS tracking of phone to tell where manuer was
      applied. No one uses it despite simple easy UX.
    • Consider “PretoTyping” – before prototyping, check the market and
      buy-in before you spend any effort.

  • Land-use Planners – a “missing person” in our conversation/community

  • “We’d have to be MS”
    (Ag tech components as parts of an MS Office suite analogy)

    • Ag is HUGE
    • Can we narrow our focus?
      • Small Organic Farm Tools
        1. Business management sw
        2. ?Trello?
        3. What other tools would small organic farmers

  • Localization is key to buy-in

    • A small region of farmers banding together to work on certain metrics.

  • Supporting Open Source

    1. Is there a path to help farmers?
    2. GOATech: Local User Groups

  • How do we generate value for farmers (ethically and openly) for farmers?

  • Mapping the competition space and Looking for gaps

  • Is there a revenue model?

  • The full supply chain integration is how you get 98% of the market.

  • What are the relationships between: farmers, suppliers, etc.

Summarization reflections

The Suite needs to:

  1. Generate revenue
  2. Data derivatives
  3. Fit into local contexts
  4. Become indispensable

Do farmers need software?

  • Cell for phone & email
  • quickbooks
  • supply-chain/csa mgmt tools

Website to compare all the components of the Ag Solution space.

Farmer’s aren’t concerned with Open Source.

Better understanding of needs of farmers needs /a la/ stackshare.io
[NUG] awesome-agtech.git{HUB,LAB}.com

How do we organize as a community to do R&D?

  • Can we do a survey of farmer/ag-researcher?? Are there already USDA
    census questions that can inform us about tech being used?