Indian startup Niqo Robotics leads Asia in agricultural spot spraying and commercializes 90,000 acres

In a breakthrough for the Asian agri-tech market, India-based deep-tech start-up Niqo Robotics has commercialized AI-assisted agrochemical spraying also known as spot spraying for the first time in the continent. The company shipped its flagship AI spot sprayers called Niqo RoboSpray across Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, and Telangana. The 50 units deployed have sprayed over 90,000 acres this Kharif season. With a focus on cotton and chili crops this season, the company has served over 1800 farmers and saved up to 60% in chemical costs using their AI technology.

AI-based spot spraying is an environmentally and financially sustainable alternative to broadcast spraying. The current practice of broadcast spraying involves indiscriminate spraying of chemicals like pesticides, insecticides, fungicides, and herbicides on farmlands without differentiating between target plants and soil. This chemical-intensive and climate-hostile method drives up input costs for farmers and poses significant risks to soil health, food safety, and the health of farm communities.

Niqo spot sprayers use a proprietary AI camera built with deep learning models to differentiate between target and non-target areas to selectively spray the right dosage of chemicals only on the plant, without spraying the soil. This plant-level target spraying saves up to 60% in chemical input, maximizing ROI for farmers and limiting chemical pollution on-farm ecosystems. The company also carried out 218 internal efficacy trials to confirm that spot spraying maintains the agrochemical's effectiveness in protecting against pests. This study has been externally validated by a leading agricultural university and is due for publication soon.

Niqo offered spot spraying as a service through village-level entrepreneurs in the Akola, Guntur, and Khammam regions making the technology accessible to farmers. Farmers who have availed the benefits of Niqo spot spray reported up to 60% chemical cost savings in the early stages of spray without any compromise on efficacy.

"Global food future hinges on how quickly tech-enabled sustainable practices like spot spraying can be adopted at scale. At Niqo we have built a commercially viable spot spray technology that is accessible to farmers and reliable for rugged farm operations. This has allowed us to scale making us a frontrunner in spot spray technology, globally. There is immense pride in driving this progress right here in India" said, Jaisimha Rao, Founder & CEO of Niqo Robotics.