# Keynote Case Study: DTN Ag Summit 2018 — Agriculture 2045 Looks Nothing Like Yesterday
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At the DTN 2018 Ag Summit in Chicago, futurist Jim Carroll took more than 700 farmers and agricultural professionals into a future of robotics, autonomous equipment, virtualized 24-hour farming and continuous spatial intelligence. Agriculture 2045 Looks Nothing Like Yesterday Agriculture is already highly innovative, but the convergence of autonomy, robotics and data is pushing the pace even faster. Jim's keynote, "Agriculture 2045: Weed-Zapping Robots & Intelligent Plants," showed a room full of growers how the farm is becoming a continuous, always-on operation — and why the farmer's judgment matters more than ever. Six trends are shaping that shift. Autonomous Tractors. Self-driving equipment makes continuous operation and new labor models increasingly practical. Farm Robotics. Robotic pickers and weed-zapping systems move automation directly into field work. Drone Intelligence. Continuous aerial observation adds a new layer of spatial awareness to crop management. Virtualized Farming. More of the farm can be monitored and managed through digital systems beyond the physical field. Smart Biology. Intelligent plants, advanced seed choices and biological science expand the toolkit available to growers. Micro-Climate Control. Localized weather and irrigation intelligence make management more precise at ever-smaller scales. Farming becomes a continuous, data-rich, autonomous system — without losing the judgment of the farmer, Jim told the DTN Ag Summit audience. His advice to the room was simple: think growth, think optimism, think like a farmer. Explore more keynote case studies.

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Source: https://jimcarroll.com/2019/01/dtn-ag-summit-2018-past/