Farmer's one of first to use AI driverless tractors

Will Mumford, a fifth-generation farmer in St Neots, Cambridgeshire, has made history by being one of the first farmers in the UK to adopt the use of driverless tractors. These autonomous vehicles have been used for cultivating soil and planting seeds, with the capability to operate for up to 30 hours at a time while causing minimal damage to the land. Despite the potential benefits, the current cost of autonomous tractors, ranging between £180,000 and £320,000, poses a barrier to widespread adoption. The National Farmers' Union has expressed its support for the technological advancement but has stressed the importance of affordability. Mr. Mumford, who also serves as the managing director of a company that supplies driverless tractors, has highlighted the detrimental impact of the industry's reliance on large machinery, which has led to soil structure damage and reduced biodiversity. He envisions that the lighter driverless tractors will contribute to the restoration of soil structure and enable more sustainable farming practices. These autonomous tractors, equipped with radar, ultrasound, and sensors, are approximately half the size of traditional tractors and are designed to detect objects and halt the vehicle's movement. Mr. Mumford is optimistic that the integration of artificial intelligence will not result in a reduction of farmers but rather empower them to engage in more efficient and improved farming methods by eliminating tedious and time-consuming tasks.