APRIL 202319to industry estimates and a recent PWC report, startups in Indian AgTech are likely to receive a record $1 billion this fiscal, taking total investments to $2.5 billion since 2012 with a further $10 billion expected in the next decade.With India's digital ecosystem witnessing healthy tailwinds through affordability and availability of high-speed internet and maturing digital content, it presents exciting opportunities for innovation in agriculture with the leveraging of next generation technologies such as AI, ML, IoT and Software as a Service (SaaS). The Government is also using this window of opportunity as evidenced by its proactive initiatives on conceptualizing a national agri stack and developing a regulatory framework for the use of drones in agriculture. The AgTech sector is abuzz with the increasing flow of growth capital into startups that play across the value chain from market linkage to financing, to precision farming, to mechanization services. This fast-growing startup ecosystem is bringing new business models that seek to address several legacy challenges in the industry. But what will it take for startups to translate buzz and big valuations into meaningful on-ground impact that materially contribute to doubling farmer income? Here are Five Pointers for Ag Tech Startups in Order to Boost Farm Prosperity Need to See Real Value in Money Terms: All roads lead to value creation for farmers. Unless technology-based solutions can deliver incremental value add for farmers they will neither adopt nor stick with those solutions. While acceptability of digital solutions will no doubt be aided by the rapid increase in rural smart phone usage and the increased comfort level of using digital devices, the truth is adoption requires a clear demonstration of incremental value. One needs to focus relentlessly in ensuring farmers and other adopters in the ecosystem see a positive impact on their income per acre and a rapid payback on their initial investment. Phygitizing the Model: Agriculture is intrinsically a physical activity and despite the pandemic triggered spur to move digital, most farmers still require physical validation and presence. To trigger changes in farmer behaviour, on-ground solutions and activities have to come together with digital ones. On-ground advisory and rental solutions and Takneek plots (demonstration plots) create empirical evidence for farmers, build trust and local relationships and make physical transactions easier. Digital solutions by several start-ups meanwhile bring in a unique set of insights and use cases for farmers and other stakeholders. For instance, an AI powered advisory app enables farmers to diagnose pests and disease in real time and get a remedial measure. An IoT solution for rental entrepreneurs enables them to remotely monitor their machine activities through an app, in real time. Beware of Growth Hacks: As startups it is easy to fall into the trap of short-cuts and often unsustainable solutions to drive growth in key metrics. Startups need to ask themselves whether they are growing by creating long term value for users or by enticing farmers and users with unsustainable offers. A good way to create a business for the long term is to ensure that all key activities genuinely address the big problems in Indian agriculture. These way short-cuts can be avoided. To be successful an AgTech startup needs to anchor its efforts around delivering
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