December 3, 2024
The NaLamKI project, led by the Fraunhofer Heinrich-Hertz-Institut (HHI), is paving the way for the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) in agriculture. The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) has officially recognized the NaLamKI platform as the global reference architecture for agricultural data collection and processing. This platform empowers farmers to access a wide range of data and AI-driven tools, all in a unified and user-friendly manner. NaLamKI is funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Protection.
AI-based solutions can make agricultural processes more efficient, sustainable and cost-effective. They support farmers in analyzing the condition of plants and soil on large areas and optimizing processes such as irrigation, fertilization, and pest control.
A critical factor for widespread AI adoption in agriculture is the interoperability of services and their underlying data models. NaLamKI has successfully addressed this challenge with its open, decentralized, and scalable platform, built on the European GAIA-X project to ensure transparency, data sovereignty, and security.
“The recognition of the NaLamKI platform as an international reference architecture is a major landmark,” explains Dr. Sebastian Bosse, NaLamKI project manager and AI expert at Fraunhofer HHI. “AI helps tackle the agricultural sector’s biggest challenges — climate change, safeguarding biodiversity, labor shortages, and improving crop protection. Our goal is to support farmers worldwide.”
The NaLamKI platform has been successfully tested in user-driven, scalable use cases such as drone-based data collection, disease detection in wheat, yield estimation in orchards, satellite data integration, and optimizing irrigation and fertilization. It is further being validated through the ACRAT research project funded by the German Ministry of Food and Agriculture.
Looking ahead, the NaLamKI team plans to secure and expand the project results. In the first quarter of 2025, they will launch a limited liability company to manage the platform’s commercial operations, while also establishing an association to consolidate stakeholders’ standardization efforts and foster ongoing collaboration.