Startup grows a fresh crop of data:Redmond, Wash.-basedAigenistraining its autonomous, solar-powered weeding robotson AI-generated plants, cutting the time it takes them to learn a new crop from years to about a week. That speed, along with a steep rise in diesel prices, is helping the 6-year-old ag-tech company attract new customers and expand into crops such as asparagus, hops and lettuce. Aigen says it’s nearly sold out of robots for 2027.
A nose for ripeness:Seattle startupStrellaraised $4.25 millionto expand its technology that tracks how fruit is ripening as it moves from growers to grocery stores. The goal is to help businesses spot potential spoilage and waste less food.
- Washington apple growers are also turning to robotics,Axios reports.To combat labor shortages and rising costs, ag-tech ventureRESERVOIRis planning a Yakima Valley testing operation next spring for robots designed to pick one of the hardest crops to automate.
Keeping it in the family:HumanTronik, an AI startup co-founded byIcertisco-founderMonish Darda,acquired CloudMoyo, the Bellevue tech consultancy Darda helped spin out of Icertis in 2015. CEOManish Kediawill keep running CloudMoyo, whose 300-plus consultants will now sell and implement HumanTronik’s AI agents for Outlook and Teams alongside their existing work.
Robotic boost to microbe research:Pacific Northwest National Laboratory(PNNL) isbuilding a facility where automated instrumentswill grow and study bacteria, yeast and other microbes, taking on some of the repetitive work scientists do by hand. When it opens in 2029, researchers will be able to apply to use it for free.
Hot Links
- Washington Senate Democrats are accusing a Republican-backed PACof using an undisclosed AI-manipulated image in a campaign mailer, setting up an early test of a state law that allows candidates to sue over deceptive synthetic media in political ads. (Axios)
- A new analysis breaks down the growing debate around AI data centers and water usage, exploring how cooling technology, local utility agreements, and a lack of centralized federal data impact community water supplies. (USAFacts)
- Political columnist and cartoonistDavid Horseytakes aim atMicrosoft,AmazonandT-Mobilefor contributing to President Trump’s planned White House ballroom, arguing the tech giants are trading the region’s tradition of civic-minded philanthropy for political access and potential federal contracts. (The Seattle Times)
- Xbox employees within 50 miles of Microsoft’s Redmond campuswill need to work from the office at least four days a week starting Feb. 1, up from the company’s three-day standard, according to an internal memo. The change comes as Microsoft plans to cut about 20% of Xbox jobs by the end of its fiscal year next June. (The Verge)
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