Technology

Krishi Mangal: Scaling Innovations for Climate Resilient Agriculture

Published

7 months ago

June 19, 2024

An initiative by Cisco India CSR in partnership with Social Alpha

In its successful second edition, Krishi Mangal, a scale-up initiative, has supported 7 Agri-tech start-ups that are solving the challenges in agriculture and allied livelihoods and helping small and marginal farmers to be climate-resilient These start-ups received grant funding, support for market scale-up, venture acceleration from Social Alpha, and mentorship from Cisco’s experts for 12 months Krishi Mangal program, since its inception in 2021, has supported 12 startups, enabled more than 40,000 small and marginal farmers and generated over 1000 jobs boosting local economy.

BENGALURU, India, June 19, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Krishi Mangal, a scale-up Accelerator supported by Cisco India CSR, and powered by Social Alpha, has supported 7 in-revenue Agri-tech startups in its second edition of the program. These start-ups, with the comprehensive support of the program, focused on scaling technologies for soil testing and rejuvenation, water and crop management, and allied services. Each start-up received a wide range of support, including grant funding, piloting opportunities, go-to-market assistance, fundraising guidance, technology refinement, and mentorship support from experts. By combining Social Alpha’s innovation curation approach with Cisco’s technological expertise, these start-ups have successfully deployed technologies to support farmers.

The accelerator program was first launched in 2021 and has supported 12 startups since its inception. Till date, it has enabled more than 40,000 small and marginal farmers by bringing access to technology and improving their income, as well as supporting the local economy to generate more than 1000 jobs.

The cohort of the second edition includes the following start-ups:

Proximal Soilsens has built the world’s tiniest, most repeatable, and user-friendly soil testing system, ‘NutriSens’, to provide accurate, quick soil test results. With the program’s support, Soilsens has scaled its operations in Maharashtra by building B2B channel partners and enhanced their ground reach with micro-entrepreneurship model.Niyo Farm Tech has designed small, user-friendly sprayers to reduce drudgery and improve yields. During the last 12 months in the program, they have scaled their model by trying out multiple sales channels like dealership model, field demonstrations for farmers, using social media for lead generation and digital marketing, while scaling the ones that generated better sales.Urdhavam Environmental Technologies has developed a smart patented borewell recharging technique – Borecharger, to revive borewells. The program has supported them to build new market i.e. selling Borecharger as a service to the farmers, with trials in selected districts of Maharashtra, while also supporting them in technology improvement.Dharaksha Ecosolutions has created a biotechnology process that converts crop stubble waste into biodegradable packaging material, replacing thermocol. With the support of the program, Dharaksha has designed and commissioned an automatic machine, thus reducing manual work and scaling production capacity by 10 times.Animeta Agritech uses a digitized end-to-end animal healthcare platform, providing instant aid 24/7 through its disease-diagnosing chatbot and a connected platform for ethnoveterinary products. During the last 12 months, Animeta team has enhanced their farmers’ reach by setting up 10 clusters in Tamil Nadu, each cluster comprising of 100-150 villages. This has helped them increase their sales 5 times during the year.Mivipro Products Private Limited developed Herboliv+, a bio-liquid made from botanical extracts and natural ingredients. It effectively masks the crop’s odour and renders it unappetizing for wild animals. The program has supported Mivipro to enhance their customers‘ reach by setting up clusters in Uttar Pradesh and building B2B channels in 3 more states.Capsber Global Agro improves crop yields and food security by leveraging the potential of the microbiome, which results in a decreased carbon footprint and mitigates soil erosion. With the program’s support, Capsber is able to increase product adaptability with farmers while setting up 6 clusters in Karnataka.

Harish Krishnan, Managing Director & Chief Policy Officer, Cisco India, said, “With over 70% of India’s population relying on agriculture, improving farm productivity is crucial for national growth and prosperity, a priority highlighted in recent elections. At Cisco, our purpose is to power an inclusive future for all. Krishi Mangal, our deep tech accelerator program in collaboration with Social Alpha, exemplifies our commitment to supporting small and marginal farmers with technology and innovation, revolutionizing farming practices, making them more profitable and sustainable. We are proud of the Agri-tech startups identified through Krishi Mangal and are dedicated to helping them develop products, enhance value propositions, localize solutions, and scale their organizations. Through Krishi Mangal 2.0, we aim to invest in further technology-led innovations to build climate-resilient agricultural practices, significantly improving the lives of marginal farmers and boosting agricultural productivity and climate resilience.”

Manoj Kumar, Founder, Social Alpha, said, “Smallholder farmers are severely impacted by climate change. They frequently face extreme weather events, such as floods and droughts, which damage crops and reduce yields. Water scarcity and soil degradation further threaten their productivity. These farmers often lack the resources and infrastructure to adapt, making them vulnerable to income loss and food insecurity. The unpredictable weather exacerbates their challenges, creating an unstable farming environment and jeopardising their livelihoods. Innovations in climate adaptation are essential for proactively addressing the impact of climate change and enhancing resilience among these vulnerable communities.”

About Social Alpha

Social Alpha is a multistage innovation curation and venture development platform for science and technology start-ups that address the most critical social, economic, and environmental challenges through the power of entrepreneurship and market-creating innovations. Since its inception in 2016, Social Alpha has supported 300+ start-ups, including 80+ seed investments.

For more information, please visit www.socialalpha.org

About Cisco CSR

Cisco (NASDAQ: CSCO) is the worldwide technology leader that securely connects everything to make anything possible. Our purpose is to power an inclusive future for all by helping our customers reimagine their applications, power hybrid work, secure their enterprise, transform their infrastructure, and meet their sustainability goals. Discover more on The Newsroom and follow us on X at @Cisco.

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Technology

Neusoft Education officially renamed as ” Neutech Group Limited “, accelerating the advancement of the “education-healthcare-wellness and mind tour” strategy in a new stage

Published

4 hours ago

January 12, 2025

HONG KONG, Jan. 11, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — On 9 January, Neusoft Education (09616.HK) announced that the Company’s English name will change from “Neusoft Education Technology Co. Limited” to “Neutech Group Limited”. The name change will take effect on the same day.

According to the announcement, the Company’s renaming to “Neutech Group Limited” better reflects its strategic transformation and upgrade, and more accurately demonstrates its five-in-one industry layout of “education-healthcare-wellness and mind tour”. This will establish a new corporate brand image and highlight the Company’s comprehensive strength in technological innovation and integrated development. Starting with the name change, the Company will focus on education and adapt to the aging economy, promoting the parallel development of academic education, continuing education, senior education, and resource output. This will create a business model of “education-assisted healthcare, education-assisted wellness, medical-care conversion, medical-education assistance, care-supported medicine, and care-education assistance”. Driven by technology and platform research and development, the company will achieve integrated development of education, medicine, care, health, and tourism, as well as efficient use of human, financial, and material resources. This will build a harmonious and inclusive “education + technology + medical care + health + tourism” prosperous ecosystem. It is expected to further enhance the Company’s brand reputation and industry influence, and support its sustainable development.

Neutech Group, as a pioneer in the “education-healthcare-wellness and mind tour” ecosystem in China, successfully listed on the Main Board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on 29 September 2020, becoming the “first stock of IT higher education” (stock code: 9616.HK). With the broad market opportunities brought by the aging population and the positive support of policies for the development of the elderly care industry, the Company leverages its innovative research and development capabilities in “education + technology + medical care” to build a new ecosystem of integrated development of ” education-healthcare-wellness and mind tour”.

In the education technology business sector, the Company will retain the main body of ” Neusoft Education Group” and continue to operate academic education, continuing education, and resource output businesses. Based on IT innovation education, the Company will further develop the “digital media” and “medical care” fields, build an integrated ecosystem of “education-healthcare-wellness”, and consolidate the core competitiveness of education technology in the future. The Company will also establish a characteristic product and service system based on the 4S model, providing first-class platforms, resources, models, and management services to governments, universities, hospitals, and health care institutions, continuously empowering partners’ reform and development.

In the elderly education and elderly care technology business sector, following the concept of “Elderly care starts with prevention, education drives elderly care, and technology empowers elderly care”, the Company has deeply developed elderly education through Neuedu Phoenix Academy and created a unique “LIFECARES” model of integrated elderly education with “leisure, care, medical services, education, and integration”. Using top-notch medical and care services and platform services to empower the elderly to live a happy life, the Company is building a dream university for active seniors. In addition, the Company will strengthen the training of elderly care service personnel by creating a one-stop industry chain of “university training + training + intern + human resource services”. On the other hand, the Company will build a medical and care technology operation service model, create an elderly care solution industrial ecosystem through the output of overall smart elderly care solutions and elderly care technology products and services, and achieve mutually beneficial cooperation with ecological partners.

In the medical and health care service sector, the Company integrates customer management service systems to provide intelligent medical and elderly care information solutions, and create a “medical care and elderly care” integrated development system with treatment-based medical institutions, rehabilitation-based nursing institutions, and care-based elderly care institutions. Its subsidiaries, Ruikang Cardiovascular Hospital, Dalian Ruikang Zhuomei Stomatology Hospital Co., Ltd., and Wecare Family Nursing Home, have been put into operation.

In the wellness tourism sector, targeting energetic seniors, the Company integrates tourism, education, and elderly care into one, with a focus on “leisure learning, slow travel, and peaceful living”. Through the concept of “study-travel-care”, seniors can experience a variety of dimensions of “learning-travel-care” in their travel and learning process, creating a comprehensive elderly education model that provides opportunities for art experiences, promotes physical and mental relaxation, enhances cultural literacy, and expands social interaction.

In addition, the Company expands its industrial management and service sector, with the vision of building a better life and using technology to empower intelligent logistics. It explores diverse, characteristic, and value-added service models to meet the diverse needs of internal and external customers, continuously expanding its brand reputation and social influence.

With its keen market insight and deep accumulation of industry and education resources, Neutech Group Limited actively embraces the development of the silver-haired economy, timely enters new tracks, and improves its position in the industrial ecosystem. Now, the Group’s new layout of “education-healthcare-wellness and mind tour ” has been formed, which not only helps to create a new growth curve but also continuously expands new development margins, moving towards becoming a leader in the development of the “education-healthcare-wellness and mind tour” ecosystem.

CONTACT: Lin Wei, weilin@neuedu.com

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SOURCE Neutech Group Limited

Technology

RoboSense and Coco Robotics Forge Strategic Partnership to Revolutionize Autonomous Last-Mile Delivery

Published

4 hours ago

January 12, 2025

LAS VEGAS, Jan. 12, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — RoboSense (2498.HK), a global leader in AI-driven robotics technology, and Coco Robotics, an innovator in delivery robots, have announced a strategic partnership to transform last-mile logistics. By combining RoboSense’s advanced sensor technology with Coco Robotics’s delivery solutions, the collaboration aims to enhance safety, efficiency, and sustainability in urban networks.

Coco Robotics bridges the gap between local businesses and customers through advanced navigation and real-time tracking, prioritizing sustainability by reducing carbon emissions and delivery costs. Since its launch in 2020, the company has expanded operations to major U.S. and European cities, forming partnerships with food delivery leaders like Uber Eats and DoorDash to meet the growing demands of modern logistics and support a greener future.

This partnership addresses key challenges in autonomous last-mile delivery by integrating RoboSense’s perception solutions into Coco Robotics’s fleet to enhance navigation and obstacle detection. Together, the companies are accelerating the deployment of delivery robots to optimize efficiency and scale operations.

“We’re thrilled to collaborate with RoboSense to push the boundaries of what’s possible in last-mile delivery,” said Zach Rash, Co-founder and CEO of Coco Robotics. “This partnership strengthens our ability to provide safe, reliable, and sustainable delivery solutions at scale, helping us better serve businesses and communities.”

Mark Qiu, CEO of RoboSense, said, “The successful collaboration with Coco Robotics is one of the key milestones in RoboSense’s global strategy. By combining our visual sensor technology with Coco Robotics’ innovative robotics solutions, we aim to redefine what’s possible in autonomous last-mile delivery. RoboSense will continue to innovate, providing superior incremental components and solutions to our global robotics customers. Partnering with Coco Robotics, we will create safer, smarter robotic delivery services and expand into global markets.”

About RoboSense

RoboSense (2498.HK), founded in 2014, is an AI-driven robotics technology company that supplies industry-leading incremental components and solutions for the robotics market. The company is committed to “Become the global leader in robotics technology platforms”, and its mission is “Safer world, Smarter life”. For more information about RoboSense, visit https://www.robosense.ai

About Coco Robotics

Coco Robotics is the world’s largest urban robot delivery platform. Founded in 2020, Coco has completed over 500,000 zero-emission deliveries, serving customers in the US and Europe. Coco’s mission is to create a more sustainable, reliable, and affordable last-mile logistics solution in cities around the world. For more information about Coco, visit cocodelivery.com

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SOURCE RoboSense Technology Co., Ltd.

Technology

AI Wellness Launches SoCal Fire Relief Initiative to Support Families and First Responders in Southern California

Published

8 hours ago

January 12, 2025

LOS ANGELES, Jan. 11, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — Demonstrating a commitment to both innovation and compassion, AI Wellness has officially launched the SoCal Fire Relief Initiative to provide aid to families and first responders affected by the devastating fires in Southern California. Unveiled during CES 2025, this initiative aims to deliver critical resources and long-term recovery solutions to the communities hardest hit by this tragedy.

“Southern California is more than just where we operate—it’s our home,” said Dr. Gideon Kwok, Co-Founder of AI Wellness. “The fires have left countless families without homes, belongings, and hope. This initiative is our way of giving back and rebuilding the lives of our neighbors and the first responders who have worked tirelessly to protect them.”

Let’s Take Action Together

The SoCal Fire Relief Initiative brings together individuals, brands, and organizations to address the urgent and long-term needs of affected communities. In partnership with the Mission Community Hospital Foundation and the Santo Niño Health Center, AI Wellness is leading efforts to:

Provide essential supplies such as food, water, clothing, and medical care to displaced families.Deliver hydration and wellness resources to first responders working on the frontlines.Support long-term community recovery through wellness programs and innovative solutions.

“It is during a crisis that the best of humanity comes out,” said Bernard Hiller. “It’s important for those affected to know they are not alone. This is a huge undertaking that we cannot do without you. These are our friends, neighbors, and family. Please help us.”

How You Can Help

The initiative provides several ways to make a difference:

Donate to Relief Efforts:
Contributions directly fund essential resources for families and first responders.Send Water to Evacuation Centers:
Every purchase of AI Wellness Water helps ensure first responders and displaced families stay hydrated, while also funding continued production and donation efforts.Spread Awareness:
Share the SoCal Fire Relief Initiative with your networks to amplify its reach and inspire collective action.Wellness Bundles:
Wellness bundle purchases such as the Powersuit, Smart Ring, and Mindbody Matrix Water, help support relief efforts with proceeds contributing to recovery initiatives.

DONATE HERE

Real Impact in Action

Since the fires began, AI Wellness and its partners have made a significant impact:

Delivered over 10,000 water packs to evacuation centers and first responders.Distributed 500 wellness bundles to displaced families.Donated proceeds from the first 1,000 AI Wellness Powersuits and 5,000 Smart Rings to relief efforts.Raised $250,000 to support critical aid and recovery.

“This initiative is about more than providing relief,” said Abby Aboitiz Founder of AI Wellness. “It’s about restoring hope and rebuilding our community, together.”

Uniting Brands and Innovators

During CES 2025, AI Wellness called on brands and innovators to collaborate on this critical mission. Companies can contribute by donating resources, partnering on curated wellness bundles, or amplifying awareness for the initiative.

“We’re inspired by the innovation and generosity of the brands we’ve met here at CES,” said Dr. TK Huynh, Medical Innovator at AI Wellness. “Together, we can transform this tragedy into an opportunity to rebuild lives and strengthen our community.”

Join the SoCal Fire Relief Initiative

Support the SoCal Fire Relief Initiative by visiting aiwellness.ai or contacting AI Wellness directly:

Email: info@aiwellness.aiInstagram: @aiwellnesstv

About AI Wellness

AI Wellness is a pioneer in health, wellness, and philanthropy, combining cutting-edge AI technology with innovative solutions to address the most pressing challenges facing communities today. From digital avatars to precision education and curated wellness bundles, AI Wellness empowers individuals and brands to make a meaningful impact.