News Summary

Instacrops, a startup founded by Mario Bustamante in Chile, is making significant advancements in agriculture by utilizing artificial intelligence to optimize water usage and enhance crop yields. Originally focused on deploying IoT sensors to monitor damaging frost conditions, Instacrops has shifted its focus to software and water use. The company now assists 260 farms in reducing water consumption by up to 30% while boosting crop yields by 20%. Instacrops employs LLM models to process over 15 million data points per hour, analyzing parameters such as soil moisture, humidity, and temperature to provide farmers with precise irrigation advice. The startup’s technology can integrate with existing farm networks and even control irrigation systems directly. Instacrops targets high-value crops like apples and avocados in Latin America and operates on a subscription basis. Having been part of the Y Combinator summer 2021 batch and backed by SVG Ventures and Genesis Ventures, Instacrops will showcase its innovative solutions at TechCrunch Disrupt 2025 in San Francisco.