Explore the 2026 Agenda

• As intelligence becomes a shared capacity between people, organizations, and machines, the foundations of leadership and value creation in the food system are being re-written.  What does strategic leadership look like when decision-making, innovation, and foresight are increasingly co-created with intelligent systems? How will this redefine competitiveness and governance across the food system?
• How do we move from linear supply chains to adaptive, learning networks that respond in real time to environmental, market, and consumer change – and what new business models emerge when information becomes primary driver of growth?
• How do we design ecosystems of shared intelligence where data, insight, and innovation circulate fluidly across organizations, industries, and borders to unlock continuous, collective advantage?

• As the US, China, Singapore and Dubai accelerate investment in AI, robotics, and biotechnology, how are agtech investment strategies evolving to support deeper R&D and innovation in North America?
• What new combinations of venture, catalytic capital, sovereign wealth and evergreen funds are emerging – and how are public, private, and philanthropic financing streams converging to accelerate agri-tech breakthroughs?
• As AI-driven innovation attracts a broader and more diverse investor base, how are expectations shifting, and what frameworks are needed to manage risk, transparency and responsible deployment in this new era of intelligence?

• What small and large language models are currently available and how are they being tuned to agriculture? What practical insights are emerging from the early wave of experimentation?
• Which AI applications are already delivering measurable impact and ROI, and which will remain longer-term bets?
• How can the agriculture industry design and manage vast datasets while remaining competitive, and how can deeper collaboration with big tech enhance cloud infrastructure, data security and analytics capabilities?

• How have robotic platforms, autonomous machinery, and drone system evolved as AI accelerates capability and reliability?
• Which use cases are commercially viable today and where are we still early-stage
• What performance, labor and ROI data can we draw from current deployments across row crops, orchards, specialty and controlled environments? 

• While R&D dominates the conversation, how can we refocus on deployment at scale as the next critical frontier for robotics and autonomous machinery?  
• What logistical barriers still hinder movement across farms, and how can cross-industry collaboration unlock smarter routing and real-time support? 
• How is the evolving regulatory landscape influencing deployment strategies, and what risks and opportunities does it present for commercialization in North America?

• What is needed to move robotic innovations beyond pilots and test plots into grower operations and retailer supply chains?   
• How are startups and OEMs addressing the cost-to-value equation, and what new commercial pathways can improve market access?
• With bridge financing cycles complete and valuations under pressure, how can entrepreneurs secure larger rounds, and where can strategic partnerships help unlock scale and sustained market traction?

• What will it take to move from modular tools to fully integrated, automated farming systems? How are ML, AI and foundation models accelerating prototyping, mechanical and sensor innovation, and adaptive robotic behavior? 

• How can the sector transition from standalone robotic tools to interoperable, system-level autonomy that truly deliver agronomic and economic value? 

• How can AI-driven diagnostics, like those in automotive, streamline maintenance, reduce dealer burden, and enable grower self-sufficiency for fully automated farming enterprises? 

• How is AI reshaping the value, cost structure, and speed-to-market of biological inputs and genetic innovations?
• Hear from a leading expert on how AI-enabled discovery pipelines are beginning to convert research investment into scalable, commercially viable breakthroughs in agricultural biotechnology.

• What does an AI-first R&D pipeline look like, and how are language models and predictive platforms using large biological datasets to surface new microbes, proteins, molecules, and genetic traits?
• Which differentiated modes of action are showing the strongest commercial promise, and how are new biologicals and genetic innovations delivering measurable agronomic and economic value? 
• How are early-stage discoveries validated with scientific rigor, and what is the emerging role of agentic AI in autonomously designing experiments, prioritizing targets, and accelerating validation?

• Which crops are being optimized for shifting growing regions and changing consumer demands, and how are supply chains evolving?
• How is AI accelerating R&D in precision breeding and gene editing, and what nascent breakthroughs are redefining speed to market in a long-cycle innovation space?
• How do epigenetics and seed treatments enable one-season trait adaptation as a complementary solution to breeding and editing?

• With oversupply, pricing pressure, and generics flooding the market, how can companies across the biologicals value chain deliver differentiated, trusted solutions to growers?
• From bioprotection to biostimulants, which categories and new solutions show real promise amid strained farm economics, and how can we improve consistency in biological efficacy to move beyond one-season miracles to long-term agronomic value?
• How can the industry integrate higher standards and enable data flow, and what role must regulators play in enabling faster, science-based registration?   

• How are farmers making decisions and adapting as technology and new tools reshape agriculture? Join a candid conversation with growers at the forefront of agricultural change, sharing insights on practical challenges, innovation and the evolving role of people on the farm.

• As farmers navigate a new era of intelligence, how are their experiences driving the co-creation of technologies and what new investment strategies are emerging as a result?  
• Following a year of recalibration, what promising venture approaches – or complementary models – are rebuilding trust among start-ups, venture funds, and LPs?
• Join leading investors as they discuss current capital deployment signals and the near-term trajectory of agtech and deeptech investment.

• As agentic AI emerges, the most powerful player in agriculture may not be human. What will define leadership as intelligent systems begin to co-create boardroom strategy and decision-making?
• Which frontiers of innovation are unlocked as agriculture adopts agentic AI, and how can established institutions leverage deeptech for a competitive edge? 
• As these systems challenge governance and trust, which cross-industry alliances will shape the next era of intelligent agriculture?

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Join us for a morning of conversation, networking, and inspiration- open exclusively to women in agriculture and related industries. The Women in Ag Breakfast celebrates leadership, career growth, and the opportunity to shape the future of the sector.

• As the “Make America Healthy Again” movement gains momentum, it is redefining the link between food, health and society. How can agriculture build true resilience amid economic volatility while ensuring a healthy, reliable food supply?
• With growing regions and legacy systems under strain, how should we rethink crop choices, production zones, and the infrastructure that connects them?
• What bold strategies will unlock the economic and public value of biodiversity and ecological health, and sustainable practices?
• How must risk management evolve in an agriculture system under pressure from climate, market, and societal shifts?

• How is geospatial and satellite monitoring revealing critical land-use changes in U.S. cropping systems, and what do these shifts mean for adaptation, risk management, and long-term resilience?
• How are key commodity crops, soybeans, corn, and wheat, responding to economic pressures, climate variability and global trade shifts?
• Which emerging markets and alternative crops offer viable offtake opportunities and strong ROI?

• Are agricultural insurance models still fit for purpose in a volatile world, or will some crops soon become uninsurable?
• As private insurers retreat from high-risk regions, will the public sector step in to de-risk the industry and create new insurance frameworks?
• Are parametric solutions gaining traction in U.S. markets, and are they genuinely effective in supporting financial adaptation?

• What does it mean to be a farmer in 2025 as volatility and disruption reshape agriculture? How are growers redefining their roles as producers, business owners, entrepreneurs, and stewards of the land? Join a candid conversation with a grower navigating the realities of modern farming – from economic uncertainty and market reorganization to regenerative practices.

• With “Make America Healthy Again” movement on the rise, how can regenerative agriculture deliver more resilient farms, more nutritious ingredients, and a more secure food supply in the U.S.?
• Which technologies and practices - from biotechnology to precision agriculture - are transforming food production, and what impact are they having across the value chain from soil health to retail shelf?
• What does a truly shared-risk, shared-value financing model look like, and how do we connect the dots to scale from millions to billions of acres?  

• From soil health and water management to pest detection, how can smart remote sensing systems provide real-time intelligence to reshape decision-making and enhance long-term farm resilience?
• What role does computer vision play in augmenting human teams, building grower trust in data, and improving operational efficiency and profitability?
• With a growing array of tools and platforms, how can the industry move toward standardization and clarity?

• In partnership with XPRIZE, World Agri-Tech presents an interactive workshop exploring the challenges and opportunities in soil health sensing, with an emphasis on affordable, high-resolution data.
• Designed to foster focused dialogue and showcase the latest advances, the session will feature lightning presentations and deep-dive discussions.
• The workshop will tackle targeted challenges, such as data collection, data quality and verification, and data-to-impact translation, developing ideas and catalyzing prize concepts.

• As startup consolidation accelerates, how will it reshape the agtech landscape, and who stands to gain or lose in the race for market dominance?
• What bold bets are corporate VCs making as they recalibrate, and what does it signal about the next wave of strategic priorities?
• Beyond traditional VC, where are pools of patient capital emerging to redefine scale, risk and opportunity in agtech?
• In a world of volatility and converging intelligence, which signals matter most, and which wildcards could upend the investment playbook?