Dutch tulip fields are being looked after by an AI robot

Now, the health of tulip bulbs and flowers in Noordwijkerhout is being monitored by an AI-trained robot named ‘Theo’, saving the time (and spines) of the farm’s most dedicated workers.

Theo the robot takes its name after a retired employee from the WAM Pennings farm and is back for its second year of helping to prevent a pesky and deadly disease from ruining the season’s tulip blossoms.

The front of the robot has been fitted with high-tech cameras that take photos of every plant in its path. These photos are then swiftly analysed by Theo’s specially trained AI model to determine whether or not they are sick.

The knowledge of expert tulip farmers has been transferred to Theo’s AI model, enabling it to recognise flowers that aren’t doing well by the revealing red stripes that appear on their leaves.

When a flower is showing signs of infection, the robot records its precise GPS coordinates to pinpoint which ones need to be destroyed.

This is a welcome solution in the tulip farming sector, whose farmers are growing in age and have difficulty spending hours in the fields and spotting the early signs of disease.

Theo van der Voort, who the robot is named after, commented on the use of this new technology after watching it at work. ‘It’s fantastic. It sees just as much as I see,’ he said.

Anyone toying with the idea of getting their own Theo to help with gardening and farming should note that obtaining this kind of agricultural sidekick will cost a pretty penny. Makers of the robot, H2L Robotics, have priced the device at 185,000 euros – the price of most luxury sports cars.

Still, workers at Dutch tulip farms say they’d much prefer to have their robot than a flashy ride, ‘because ‘a sports car can’t take out the sick tulips’.

Fair play!