Farming brothers launch crowdfunding campaign for drone app that reduces use of pesticides

Jack and Hugh Wrangham of Drone Ag are launching a crowdfunding campaign, aiming to raise £250,000 to further develop their new Skippy Scout software. Skippy Scout is a practical smartphone application that automates crop monitoring using drones, giving farmers real-time information that they can use to better target the use of pesticides.
The funds will allow the business to develop new features, hire new talent in-house and take the platform to market over the next 18 months.

About the Software

Drone Ag has developed the Skippy Scout system to autonomously fly a drone around a field. Collecting very high resolution photos at various points, which are then analysed by custom AI-based software.
Global agriculture needs to increase yields, while reducing cost of production and using less chemicals. The Skippy platform will help farmers achieve this by giving easy access to field-wide, real-time data that allows precision management of the crop, much faster than possible on foot.
Founder of Drone Ag, Jack Wrangham says, “There is a growing need to produce more food, with less resources, by optimising crop management at leaf-level. New technology like Skippy Scout is providing solutions to these challenges. And it can help farming to become more profitable and sustainable, while benefiting the environment.”
Over 100 early adopters have signed up to test the app. They are now planning the next stages of development, with the aim to develop the software to detect and measure a wide variety of potential problems in a crop, as well as adding new features to allow farm machinery to automatically apply chemicals only where needed.

Why Crowdfunding?

The agricultural industry is at the start of the next major revolution and agritech is at the forefront, predicted to grow to $4 billion worldwide by 2024*. Whilst there are a number of routes to investment available, Drone Ag wants to maintain the integrity and farming roots of their business by seeking funding from those who will directly benefit from their technology, and individuals who are interested in supporting the future of agricultural development.
Jack says, “Crowdfunding allows anyone to invest and to share in our success. We truly believe that Skippy Scout can bring huge improvements to efficiency and accuracy in agriculture and food production, which is in everyone’s interest as we try to feed a growing global population.”
You can invest in Drone Ag Limited via online platform Crowdcube in exchange for shares in the business.
Investments of this nature carry risks to your capital. Please Invest Aware.
To find out more about Drone Ag, visit their dedicated Agri-TechE member page.
* References
Global Agriculture Drone Market, 2014 – 2024 (USD Million) – Grand View Research