Imagine a field of wheat stretching to the horizon, where flour is being grown that will be made into bread to feed the people of the city. Imagine all the power to till, plant, fertilize, monitor and harvest this land is delegated to artificial intelligence: algorithms that control drip irrigation systems, self-driving tractors and combine harvesters, smart enough to make decisions about the weather and the weather reaction. the exact needs of the crop. Then imagine a hacker screwing things up.
“The idea of smart machines running a farm is not science fiction.” —Assaf Chakol
A new risk analysis, recently published in the journal Nature Machine Intelligence, warns that the future use of artificial intelligence in agriculture poses huge potential risks to farms, farmers and food security that are poorly understood.
Drones spray pesticides on wheat fields
"The idea of smart machines running farms is not science fiction. Big companies are already pioneering the next generation of autonomous agricultural robots and decision support systems that will replace humans in the field," said Dr Asaf Tzachor, from the Centre for Existential Risk Research (CSER) at the University of Cambridge, who is the first author of the study. Paper.
"But so far, no one seems to have asked, 'Is there any risk in the rapid deployment of AI in agriculture?'" he added.
The authors argue that while AI holds great promise in improving crop management and agricultural productivity, potential risks must be responsibly addressed and new technologies properly tested in experimental settings to ensure they are safe and prevent Unexpected failures, unintended consequences, and cyberattacks. Say.
In their research, the authors propose a catalog of risks that must be considered when developing AI in agriculture responsibly and ways to address them. In it, they warn that cyber attackers could disrupt commercial farms by using artificial intelligence, poisoning datasets or shutting down sprayers, autonomous drones and robotic harvesters. To prevent this, they recommend "white hat hackers" to help companies find any security holes during the development phase, thus protecting the system from real hackers.
In the context of unexpected failures, the authors suggest that an AI system that delivers optimal crop yields only in the short term may ignore the environmental consequences of achieving this goal, leading to long-term overuse of fertilizers and soil erosion. Excessive use of pesticides in pursuit of high yields can poison ecosystems; over-application of nitrogen fertilizers can contaminate soil and surrounding waterways. The authors recommend involving applied ecologists in the technology design process to ensure these situations are avoided.
Autonomous machines could improve working conditions for farmers and relieve them of manual labor. But without inclusive technology design, the socioeconomic inequalities currently entrenched in global agriculture – including gender, class and racial discrimination – will persist.
“Expert AI farming systems that do not take into account the complexity of labor inputs will ignore and potentially sustain the exploitation of disadvantaged communities,” warns Tzachor.
Various agricultural robots and advanced machinery, such as drones and sensors, have been used to collect crop information and support farmers' decisions: for example, to detect disease or under-irrigation. Self-driving combine harvesters can harvest crops without human operators. This automated system is designed to increase agricultural productivity, save labor costs, optimize production and minimize losses and waste. This has led to increased farmer incomes and greater reliance on AI in agriculture.
However, small-scale growers who grow most of the farms worldwide and feed the so-called global South may be excluded from AI-related benefits. Marginalization, low internet penetration and the digital divide may prevent smallholders from using advanced technologies, widening the gap between commercial and subsistence farmers.
With an estimated 2 billion people suffering from food insecurity, including some 690 million malnourished and 340 million children deficient in micronutrients, AI technologies and precision agriculture hold promise for food and nutrition security in the face of climate change and a growing global population bring huge benefits.
"Artificial intelligence is being hailed as the way to revolutionize agriculture. As we deploy this technology at scale, we should closely consider potential risks and seek to mitigate those risks early in the technology's design," said CSER Executive Director and co-author of the new study. Dr. Seán Ó hÉigeartaigh said.
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