Farmers don’t want to replace people; they want them more productive. Autonomy allows them to reassign labor to higher-value tasks while autonomous systems handle the repetitive, time-consuming, mundane ones.

Dealers gathered for a 60-minute roundtable discussion to share some of their top precision revenue opportunities. "Drones are one of the fastest growing segments in application and agriculture. There are massive revenue opportunities with sales and repair."

With the theme “The Role of AI in Autonomous Agricultural Systems and Socioeconomic Effects,” the conference emphasizes the transformative power of AI in addressing critical issues like food security, conservation strategies and the socioeconomic impacts of autonomous systems.

Adam Gilbertson, RDO’s senior vice president of field technology and innovation, and Jahmy Hindman, John Deere’s chief technology officer, explained how Midwestern farmers partner with equipment experts to become early adopters.

I had the chance to sit in on a panel discussion about autonomy and automation at the National Farm Machinery Show earlier this month. The panel featured leaders from Sabanto, Solinftec, Agtonomy and Case IH.

Casey Dray, global precision technology portfolio manager at CNH, Bob Armstrong, vice president of product and marketing at Claas and Jake Ridenour, channel sales manager at PTx Trimble, fielded questions on the 2025 market outlook, technology adoption trends, AI and more.

The 2025 recipient of Precision Farming Dealer’s 13th annual Most Valuable Dealership award is Ag Technology Solutions Group in Greenville, Ill.

While precision farming sales and service revenue was down on average in 2024, most dealers are optimistic they’ll bounce back this year according to the 12th annual Precision Farming Dealer Benchmark Study.