Part 7/17:
Pollination, a critical but labor-intensive process involving transferring pollen to produce high-yield hybrid plants, has traditionally been slow and error-prone. GAR automates this process by navigating greenhouses, identifying target flowers, and performing precise pollination with robotic arms. This technology offers a game-changing solution: it speeds up crop hybridization, reduces costs, and minimizes errors.
The potential of GAR extends beyond pollination. The team has engineered gene-edited, male-sterile flowers, including soybeans—one of agriculture’s most vital crops—with the aim of creating an "intelligent robotic breeding factory." The system integrates biotech, AI, and robotics, enabling rapid crop breeding through methods like denovo domestication and speed breeding.