Using machine learning, Heritable analyzes plant genomes to determine combinations that might improve yields, while lowering water consumption and raising carbon storage capacity. The models the company built were tested on thousands of plants, grown to those specifications within a “specialized growth chamber” at X’s Bay Area headquarters. The researchers also conducted field work at sites in California, Nebraska, and Wisconsin.
The company has no plans to explore mutagenesis, a GMO process that utilizes either chemicals or radiation to create crop mutations. Zamft adds, however, that CRISP-fueled gene editing will eventually play a role in making plants “programmable.” For now, however, Heritable is focused on more conventional methods.