Artificial Intelligence helps Estonian agriculture make smarter decisions

Agriculture has always been a field where success depends on many variables like weather, labour availability, input costs and decisions made at the right time. Today, however, experience and traditional methods alone are no longer enough.  

To accelerate the adoption of artificial intelligence in agriculture, AI & Robotics Estonia is taking part in the AI-Agri project, supported by the Interreg Baltic Sea Region programme. The project’s goal is to bring together farmers, technology companies, researchers, and innovation experts, and to bring AI-based solutions closer to everyday use. AIRE participates in the project as an Associated Organisation through Tallinn University of Technology (TalTech) and the Estonian University of Life Sciences. 

In agriculture, a single wrong decision or equipment failure can mean significant financial loss. That’s why having the technology alone is not enough. Solutions must be reliable, easy to use, and create clear value for the farmer. 

AIRE’s role is to help close the gap between technology developers and users. AI solutions shouldn’t be developed only in laboratories, but in cooperation with the people who will actually use them in their work. 

Estonian agriculture already has its first practical examples 

eAgronom is one of Estonia’s best-known agricultural technology companies. Its platform helps agricultural businesses manage data, plan tasks and make better management decisions. Digital tools improve visibility into field operations and allow data to be used to boost efficiency. The company has also recently begun developing an AI-based solution that automatically collects field-work data directly from the tractor cab, reducing farmers’ reporting burden. 

IntelliDry, which took part in an AIRE demo project, shows how existing agricultural machinery can be made smarter. Estonia has an estimated several thousand older batch dryers that are still functional but lack modern automation and data-driven control. IntelliDry’s solution brings a new level of capability to older equipment: using digital sensors, data collection and machine learning, it can more accurately assess the grain-drying process and make drying more efficient. The system uses the data it collects to improve predictions and adapt to the specific characteristics of each dryer. 

The AGX Field Robot, put into use through a partnership between the Estonian University of Life Sciences and Baltic Agro Machinery, demonstrates the potential of robotics in agriculture. The autonomous field robot can operate unsupervised for up to 23 hours straight and supports the development of precision agriculture. Solutions like this will help ease labour shortages and make fieldwork more efficient in the future. 

AI-Agri Brings Solutions to the Field 

Running from 2026 to 2028, the AI-Agri project aims to increase the use of AI-based solutions in agriculture across the entire Baltic Sea region. 

At the heart of the project are: 

• Lighthouse Farms – successful examples of farms already using AI solutions, whose experience helps reduce uncertainty for other farmers; 

• an online decision-support tool – a solution that helps farmers find the technologies, partners, and knowledge suited to their needs. 

AIRE’s role in the project is to connect Estonia’s AI and robotics ecosystem with the agricultural sector. This means bringing together companies, researchers, students and farmers to develop solutions that are practical, safe and grounded in users’ real needs. 

The future of agriculture is not only about new machines or algorithms. It’s about combining experience, data and technology. Smarter, data-driven agriculture doesn’t mean a smaller role for people but better decisions, lower resource use and more resilient food production.