# Turning Plants into Living Sensors: Making Farming More Sustainable with Shely Aronov, Founder and CEO of InnerPlant

- Show: [Hardware to Save a Planet](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/hardware-to-save-a-planet)
- Published: 2023-08-17
- Length: 45m
- Episode: 33
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/hardware-to-save-a-planet/2023-08-17-turning-plants-into-living-sensors-making-farming-more-sustainable-with-shely-ar
- Listen: https://podcasts.fame.so/e/1np4q7pn-shely-aronov-turning-plants-into-living-sensors

## Summary

Shely Aronov, Founder and CEO of InnerPlant, explains how her company uses genetic engineering to turn crops like soybeans into living sensors that signal stress (such as fungal pressure or nitrogen deficiency) via fluorescence. She details the technology's journey from leaf-clip prototypes to a remote sensing model using satellite imagery and hyperspectral cameras to detect these signals from space. Aronov discusses the business strategy of embedding this technology into seeds sold by partners rather than selling directly to farmers, and highlights the critical role of precision application hardware like John Deere's See & Spray in closing the loop on chemical usage.

## Chapters

- [0:03](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/hardware-to-save-a-planet/2023-08-17-turning-plants-into-living-sensors-making-farming-more-sustainable-with-shely-ar#t=3) Introduction and Founder Background
- [2:40](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/hardware-to-save-a-planet/2023-08-17-turning-plants-into-living-sensors-making-farming-more-sustainable-with-shely-ar#t=160) From Hummus to AgTech and Biosensor Origins
- [9:32](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/hardware-to-save-a-planet/2023-08-17-turning-plants-into-living-sensors-making-farming-more-sustainable-with-shely-ar#t=572) Genetic Engineering and Plant Signaling Mechanisms
- [12:53](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/hardware-to-save-a-planet/2023-08-17-turning-plants-into-living-sensors-making-farming-more-sustainable-with-shely-ar#t=773) The Problem with Current Farming and Precision Ag
- [18:09](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/hardware-to-save-a-planet/2023-08-17-turning-plants-into-living-sensors-making-farming-more-sustainable-with-shely-ar#t=1089) Business Model: Seed Partnerships and Ecosystem
- [27:31](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/hardware-to-save-a-planet/2023-08-17-turning-plants-into-living-sensors-making-farming-more-sustainable-with-shely-ar#t=1651) Satellite Detection and Fluorescence Physics
- [33:03](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/hardware-to-save-a-planet/2023-08-17-turning-plants-into-living-sensors-making-farming-more-sustainable-with-shely-ar#t=1983) Ground-Level Application with See & Spray
- [35:11](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/hardware-to-save-a-planet/2023-08-17-turning-plants-into-living-sensors-making-farming-more-sustainable-with-shely-ar#t=2111) Scaling, Regulation, and Climate Optimism

## Topics

- [Materials & manufacturing processes](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/materials-and-processes)
- [Wireless & RF](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/wireless-and-rf)
- [Sensors & measurement in products](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/sensors)
- [Scaling production](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/scaling-production)
- [Direct-to-consumer & e-commerce](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/direct-to-consumer)
- [Energy & climate tech](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/energy-and-climate-tech)

## Most relevant to

early-stage companies

## Mentioned

- InnerPlant (company)
- John Deere (company)
- See & Spray (product)
- Sabra (company)
- Blue River Technology (company)
- Impossible Foods (company)
- Tel Aviv University (company)
- NASA (company)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [164. Dyson’s Automated, Self-sustaining Strawberry Farm](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-next-byte-podcast/2024-03-05-164-dysons-automated-self-sustaining-strawberry-farm) (The Next Byte Podcast)
- [5. Making Rocket Fuel on Mars, Sustainable Transparent Wood, Plants Preventing Poisoning](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-next-byte-podcast/2021-02-16-5-making-rocket-fuel-on-mars-sustainable-transparent-wood-plants-preventing-pois) (The Next Byte Podcast)
- [Smart Farming: The Role of IoT and AI | John Deere's Gaurav Bansal | Internet of Things Podcast](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/iot-for-all-podcast/2024-06-18-smart-farming-the-role-of-iot-and-ai-john-deeres-gaurav-bansal-internet-of-thing) (IoT For All Podcast)
- [7. Diagnosing Alzheimer’s At A Glance, The Stress You Sweat, Bloom’s Better Bioplastics](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-next-byte-podcast/2021-03-02-7-diagnosing-alzheimers-at-a-glance-the-stress-you-sweat-blooms-better-bioplasti) (The Next Byte Podcast)
- [Willy Pell from Blue River Technology brings AI to the farm](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-robot-report-podcast/2022-04-15-willy-pell-from-blue-river-technology-brings-ai-to-the-farm) (The Robot Report Podcast)

## Citing this page

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