Projects

In 2026, Saiwa continues its collaboration with Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC) to further enhance drone-based monitoring of invasive aquatic vegetation. Building on last year’s high-accuracy RGB-based Water Soldier detection pipeline, this new phase focuses specifically on determining whether each detected plant is located above or below the water surface.

The project introduces a groundbreaking solution to combat Fusarium dry rot, a major issue for potato producers in Alberta, causing millions in annual losses. The solution combines two advanced technologies: eDNA monitoring to track Fusarium spore populations and AI-powered wounding detection to identify mechanical damage during harvest. With industry partnerships, the project aims to develop species-specific Fusarium detection kits, integrate real-time monitoring, and reduce storage waste. By providing predictive insights, the project seeks to improve storage yield retention and offer proactive disease management tools to producers.

Hemaa.ai, in partnership with Tarmeez, delivers an AI-powered solution for date palm plantations that enables early health monitoring, precise tree counting, and targeted weed detection using drone and satellite imagery. Leveraging advanced deep learning models, this platform enhances operational efficiency, reduces costs, and promotes sustainable agriculture through timely alerts and accurate spatial data mapping.

In partnership with Vineland Research and Innovation Centre and with funding support from the Ontario Centre of Innovation (OCI), Saiwa is developing an advanced computer vision and AI-powered platform for early stress detection in greenhouse-grown sweet peppers. This project replaces an earlier cucumber-focused initiative and targets sweet pepper crops—another economically significant greenhouse product in Ontario. By leveraging drone and robotic imagery acquisition, alongside real-time deep learning models, this initiative aims to reduce losses from disease, optimize intervention timing, and improve crop yield and quality.