Foreword Globally, agriculture stands at a defining moment in history. As the world faces the intersecting pressures of climate change, resource degradation, demographic shifts and geopolitical instability, the ability to sustainably feed a growing population is under increasing strain. Conventional approaches, though vital, are no longer sufficient to meet the scale and urgency of these challenges. Instead, there is now a requirement to take a bold leap forward – by harnessing the transformative potential of deep tech in agriculture. Deep tech, spanning domains such as artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, biotechnology, nanotechnology and satellite-enabled systems, offers several opportunities to reshape food and farming systems. These technologies not only lead to incremental improvements but can trigger fundamental shifts in how crops are grown, monitored, protected and distributed. From developing climate-resilient seed varieties to deploying autonomous farm machinery and building predictive climate models, deep tech holds the promise of creating agricultural systems that are more productive, resilient and sustainable. Seeding and commercializing deep-tech innovations, however, requires deliberate ecosystem building that encompasses supportive policies, patient capital, robust digital infrastructure and skilled human capital. Collaboration across governments, research institutions, start-ups, corporations and financiers will be essential for translating early breakthrough ideas into transformative solutions at scale. In a bid to demystify the potential of deep tech in agriculture, the World Economic Forum’s Artificial Intelligence for Agriculture Innovation (AI4AI) initiative with support from partners globally has developed this insight report. It highlights the most pressing challenges facing agriculture and illustrates promising deep-tech domains that can mitigate the risks associated with these challenges. It further explores how the convergence of multiple deep-tech domains can unlock breakthrough use cases ranging from swarm robotics and agentic AI systems to macro crop planning and supply chain risk-assessment tools. The report also outlines actionable pathways to accelerate the adoption of deep tech in agriculture. Consequently, it is an invitation to policy-makers, corporations, innovators, academia, research and funders to recognize the pivotal role of deep tech in future-proofing global agriculture and to act cohesively to support forward-looking technologies. Jeremy Jurgens Managing Director, Centre for the Fourth Industrial Revolution and Centre for Cybersecurity, World Economic ForumRanveer Chandra Chief Technology Officer, Agri-Food, Microsoft Shaping the Deep-Tech Revolution in AgricultureNovember 2025 Shaping the Deep-Tech Revolution in Agriculture 3

Shaping the Deep Tech Revolution in Agriculture 2025