World
African drone company uses AI to give vital help to US fruit and nut farmers
JOHANNESBURG – South Africa’s Aerobotics is utilizing artificial intelligence (AI) in helping fruit and nut farmers improve crop yields. Although the Cape Town-based company only started nine years ago, it is already operating in 18 countries, with the U.S. being their largest market, followed by South Africa, Australia, Spain and Portugal. Its customers produce tens of millions of tons of fresh produce every year.
California is now ground zero for Aerobotics – where the company has the biggest concentration of customers. On its 76,000 farms and ranches, sources agree, the state produces more than half of all fruit and vegetables grown in the U.S.
The California Climate and Agriculture network recently warned, “Dependent on the weather and water availability, the state has much to lose if the worst impacts of climate change on agriculture are not avoided,” the organization warned in a recent statement.
RESEARCHERS USE AI TO PREDICT CROPS IN AFRICA TO HELP ADDRESS FOOD CRISIS
Aerobotics has mapped over 600,000 acres of U.S. farmland, with growers uploading over 1 million images of fruit per month through its AI platform. (Aerobotics.)
Which is where Aerobotics has stepped in, using AI to reverse these trends by almost miraculously helping directly to increase not just the amount of produce grown, but also utilize the dwindling water resources more efficiently.
“Food security is a global challenge and everyone is being challenged to do more with less. Using the latest AI and different imagery sources, Aerobotics helps the fruit and nut industry make better decisions and improve yields,” the company’s CEO James Paterson told Fox News Digital.”
He continued, “We work with a range of fruit and nut producers across the U.S., from citrus and table grape growers in California, to apple producers in Washington, to nut growers in Arizona and New Mexico. We have mapped over 600,000 acres of farmland in the U.S., and growers are uploading over 1 million images of fruit per month through our platform, using our system to scale their knowledge.”
WHAT IS ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI)?
South African company is using AI to help farmers in the U.S. and 18 other countries. (Aerobotics)
Paterson, who operates from offices in Cape Town and California, grew up on a fruit farm in South Africa, witnessing firsthand the harsh risks involved in fruit production. This planted the proverbial seed to find a way to use data to improve operations and knowledge.
He worked on cutting-edge AI and drone technologies when pursuing a master’s degree at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, learning how to address agricultural challenges, and then teamed up with Benji Meltzer, an expert in computer vision and software systems, to found the now 60-strong Aerobotics team.
Drones and mobile phones running AI software are operated by farmers and professional drone pilots to yield data about both fruit and trees.
The porch or balcony favored by farmers worldwide in South Africa is known as a “stoep.” This, Paterson proudly proclaims, is “farming from a stoep,” as, when using drones, the farmer can evaluate his produce from his armchair.
Drones and mobile phones running AI software are operated by farmers and professional drone pilots to yield data about both fruit and trees. (iStock)
In this case, AI can perhaps be accused of thinking, as the Aerobotics software and AWS, or Amazon Web Services, servers it feeds data and images to use this information to report on the health and status of fruit, and predicts crop yield. The information received helps planning for packhouses, sales teams and retailers.
And it saves huge amounts of time, lopping hours off chores such as checking out pesky pests: AWS claimed in a statement that the AI system has cut down monitoring every tree for pests and diseases on a 50-hectare farm from an entire day to just 20 minutes.
BIPARTISAN LAWMAKERS EYE AI SAFEGUARDS FOR US AGRICULTURE INDUSTRY
This data-driven approach helps in the production of high-value fruits and nuts. (iStock)
Imagery is “analyzed by AI models to detect individual fruits, and calculate various metrics including size, color and external quality or blemishes,” Paterson told Fox News Digital.
“This data undergoes analysis through hyper-localized forecasting models to project the data forward to harvest.”
“As data accumulates on a farm, the models are fine-tuned to that specific environment. Essentially, the AI models learn and adapt to localized growing conditions, enhancing forecasting accuracy and enabling comparisons to previous years,” Paterson added.
Another AI program produces a digital model of each tree on the farm, at scale, tracking it over time. “Each tree is conceptualized as a factory that can be optimized to produce the highest quality fruit. Data is gathered by drones equipped with thermal and multispectral cameras, operated either by the grower or through our third-party pilot network,” added Paterson.
An irrigation canal runs past farmland in Lemoore, California, on June 16, 2021. (AP Photo/Noah Berger, File)
In this increasingly water-scarce world, the Aerobotics AI also detects irrigation issues such as leaks, pressure problems and blocked water lines or pipes. The software assists with fertilizer usage and replanting damaged or missing trees. Typically, when farmers lose a tree, perhaps through disease, they have to wait five or six years for a new tree to start fully producing, but with this AI, early prediction is possible, ensuring farmers get back into production within a year.
U.S. food security is also improved as the AI utilizes per-tree data to determine crop insurance policies and safeguard growers’ production.
This data-driven approach helps in the production of high-value fruit, including citrus, apples, grapes, cherries, kiwis, table grapes and pomegranates, and nuts such as almonds, pecans, and pistachios.
“We’ve started using drone imaging to monitor tree health in our orchards,” Aerobotics customer Matt Allred of Arizona’s North Bowie Farming, a pecan nut producer, told Fox News Digital. “As a result of looking at the drone images, we could see which blocks had lower health ratings and apply treatments over time.”
“Multiple flights over time show these blocks’ health catching up to the control blocks after intervention. The drone flights help us measure this across hundreds of acres, not just one small block. Seeing the improvement in the health uniformity of our blocks is what really sold me on the technology.”
“AI plays a pivotal role in our business and to our customers,” Aerobotics’ Paterson concluded. “AI enables us to construct models that generalize, learn, and operate effectively at scale. Using AI and imagery, we are able to increase efficiency of data collection by more than 10 times.”
World
Naomi Watts to Star as Ballerina Margot Fonteyn in Romantic Drama ‘Margot & Rudi,’ With WestEnd Films Selling in Cannes
Naomi Watts is set to star in romantic drama “Margot & Rudi,” which tells the true story of ballet legends Margot Fonteyn and Rudolf Nureyev. The film, to be directed by “Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris” filmmaker Anthony Fabian, has been boarded by world sales agency WestEnd Films.
The story unfolds when Fonteyn, the greatest ballerina in the West, is 42 and sensing her career is over. Nureyev is 23, a rebellious Soviet defector — magnetic, explosive, unstoppable. Together, they ignite the stage and become icons of the Swinging Sixties. Fonteyn is reborn by Nureyev’s wild energy, but their bond is complicated by her marriage and his affair with another dancer. To preserve what they have, they will risk everything for one defining ballet—because the only place they can truly be together… is on stage.
Watts, who studied dance before becoming an actress, will star as Fonteyn. She broke through with her performance in “Mulholland Drive” and earned Academy Award nominations for her leading roles in “21 Grams” and “The Impossible.”
She next stars in “The Housewife,” as well as Cody Fern’s untitled debut feature film, with Sarah Paulson, Dianne Wiest and Odessa A’Zion.
On television, she received Emmy, Golden Globe and Critics Choice nominations for her performance in “Feud: Capote vs. The Swans,” and recently starred in “Love Story.”
Alexandr Trush, principal dancer with the Hamburg Ballet, will portray Nureyev. A Russian-speaking Ukrainian ballet star, he has headlined major productions including “Giselle” and “Romeo and Juliet.”
The film also stars Academy Award nominee Richard E. Grant (“Can You Ever Forgive Me?,” “Saltburn,” “Nuremberg”), Academy Award nominee Demián Bichir (“A Better Life,” “Land,” “The Hateful Eight”) and BAFTA nominee Harriet Walter (“Succession,” “The Crown,” “Sense and Sensibility”), with additional cast to be announced.
The screenplay is written by BAFTA nominee Olivia Hetreed (“Girl With a Pearl Earring,” “Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris”).
The creative team includes Academy Award nominee hair and makeup designer Karen Hartley Thomas (“Golda,” The Son,” “The Courier”), choreographer Arthur Pita (“Ex Machina,” “Charlie’s Angels,” “Sunshine on Leith”), and BAFTA-winning costume designer Fotini Dimou (“The Children Act,” “King Lear”), with additional crew to be announced.
The film, which is set to shoot in October, is produced by Mike Goodridge for Good Chaos (“Triangle of Sadness,” “Ballad of a Small Player,” “Quo Vadis, Aida?”), Anthony Fabian for Elysian Films (“Skin,” “Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris”), Olivia Hetreed for Sympathetic Ink and Chris Coen (“Funny Games,” “The Childhood of a Leader,” “Shadow Dancer”). Executive producers are Thom Mount, Jeffrey Berg and Andy Paterson.
Fabian said: “Growing up in Mexico City, watching Margot and Rudi’s performances in the cinema sparked my passion for stories that blend music, theater and dance. The film explores the private joy and pain behind their public personas, capturing their unique chemistry. Ballet sequences from the duo’s most iconic roles and performances together drive the story, using movement and cinematic fantasy to reveal the truth behind a couple as famous in their day as The Beatles. Their love, defying barriers of culture, age, class and sexuality, is romantic, unconventional and thrilling — a love story like no other.”
Fabian’s previous film “Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris” was released worldwide by Focus Features/Universal International Pictures in 2022. It grossed over $30 million at the box office and received BAFTA, Golden Globe and Oscar nominations.
Watts said: “Dance was my first love, and I’ve long dreamed of making a dance film. I feel deeply honored and excited to be playing Margot Fonteyn, one of the greatest dancers of all time. Her relationship with Rudolf Nureyev was extraordinary — both artistically and emotionally — and I’m thrilled to be exploring it with such sensitivity and imagination under the direction of Anthony Fabian.”
Maya Amsellem, managing director of WestEnd Films, said: “’Margot & Rudi’ is a sweeping and beautiful story about two iconic artists who redefine each other at a pivotal moment in their lives. Naomi Watts is set to deliver one of the most transformative performances of her career, combining emotional intensity with the physicality of dance. With Anthony Fabian’s visionary direction and the film’s bold, cinematic use of ballet, this will be a powerful big-screen experience we’re excited to bring to the international market.”
WestEnd will introduce the film to buyers at Cannes Film Festival.
Watts is repped by CAA, Untitled and HJTH. Fabian is repped by Jon Cassir at CAA and Olivia Gray at Independent Talent. He is managed by Ensemble Entertainment.
Ships reportedly attacked in Strait of Hormuz as blockade turns 28 vessels around
Daniel Turner, Power The Future founder and executive director, analyzes the US blockade against Iranian ships in the Strait of Hormuz and Iran’s strategy to outlast the US economically. He details the impact on oil and gas prices, arguing that markets need confidence to stabilize. Turner critiques current climate policies, stating they’ve made lives expensive and hurt the US economically and militarily.
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Iran reportedly opened fire upon three vessels in the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday.
The British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) Centre noted that a container ship was fired upon by an IRGC gunboat near Oman Wednesday, causing “heavy damage to the bridge.”
“No fires or environmental impact reported. All Crew reported safe,” the notice said.
Another UKMTO warning said “an outbound cargo ship” west of Iran reported “having been fired upon and is now stopped in the water.” The notice said the crew was safe and accounted for.
“There is no reported damage to the vessel,” it added.
IRAN FIRES ON 2 SHIPS IN STRAIT OF HORMUZ AFTER TRUMP EXTENDS CEASEFIRE
Maps4Media processed and enhanced Sentinal-2 satellite imagery shows a broad view of the Strait of Hormuz between southern Iran and Oman’s Musandam Peninsula, including surrounding islands, coastal terrain, and turquoise shallow-water zones at the entrance to the Persian Gulf. (Photo enhanced and published by maps4media via Getty Images)
Iranian media said the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) was bringing two ships to Iran after seizing them in the Strait of Hormuz, according to The Associated Press.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy (IRGCN) Command claimed in an X post that the two vessels, the MSC-FRANCESCA and EPAMINODES, “had endangered maritime security by operating without the necessary permits and tampering with navigation systems.”
It said the vessels “were seized by the IRGC Navy and escorted to Iran’s coast,” according to a translation.
“Disruption of order and safety in the Strait of Hormuz is our red line,” the command wrote.
It also claimed the MSC-FRANCESCA is “linked to the Zionist regime.”
IRAN’S REVOLUTIONARY GUARD SIDELINES PRESIDENT AS MILITARY GRIP EXPANDS
Motorists ride past the Imam Sadiq (AS) mosque with a giant Iranian flag installed on its front at the Palestine Square in Tehran on April 19, 2026. (ATTA KENARE / AFP via Getty Images)
Iranian media also reported that the IRGC attacked a third ship, identified as the Euphoria, according to the AP.
The development comes after U.S. President Donald Trump announced Tuesday afternoon that the United States was extending a ceasefire.
“Based on the fact that the Government of Iran is seriously fractured, not unexpectedly so and, upon the request of Field Marshal Asim Munir, and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, of Pakistan, we have been asked to hold our Attack on the Country of Iran until such time as their leaders and representatives can come up with a unified proposal,” the president wrote on Truth Social..
ISRAEL UNVEILS GAME-CHANGING ARTILLERY AGAINST IRAN-BACKED HEZBOLLAH AMID FRAGILE CEASEFIRE
President Donald Trump speaks to members of the media outside the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, D.C., on Monday, April 13, 2026. (Salwan Georges/Bloomberg)
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“I have therefore directed our Military to continue the Blockade and, in all other respects, remain ready and able, and will therefore extend the Ceasefire until such time as their proposal is submitted, and discussions are concluded, one way or the other,” he added.
The Associated Press contributed to this report
Published on
A court in Moldova sentenced oligarch Vladimir Plahotniuc to 19 years in prison on Wednesday in a case linked to the disappearance of $1 billion (€850 million) from the country’s banking system.
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A former businessman, lawmaker and kingpin in the Democratic Party of Moldova, Plahotniuc fled Moldova in 2019, as he faced a series of corruption charges.
That included complicity in the scheme that led to money disappearing from Moldovan banks in 2014, which at the time was equivalent to around one-eighth of the country’s GDP.
He was extradited from Greece last year, after being arrested at Athens airport under an Interpol international alert.
A Chișinău judge announced the ruling on Wednesday.
The court also ordered the seizure of some $60 million (€51 million) from Plahotniuc’s accounts, said prosecutor Alexandru Cernei after the sentencing.
Plahotniuc, 60, was not present in court on Wednesday.
He had previously dismissed the charges, calling his trial “political” and “flawed from the outset.”
His lawyer Lucian Rogac said he would appeal the decision, deeming it “clearly illegal.”
“The entire process was conducted in a tremendous rush, with numerous violations of the defendant’s rights,” Rogac said.
After Plahotniuc’s return to the country, Moldovan prosecutors had demanded 25 years in jail, the maximum provided by law, in a case linked to the disappearance of money from three banks in 2014.
They accused Plahotniuc of forming and leading a criminal organisation, fraud and money laundering on a particularly large scale.
The influential businessman and politician was added to a US State Department sanctions list in 2022 for alleged corruption.
The charges included controlling the country’s law enforcement to target political and business rivals and meddling in Moldova’s elections.
He was added to a UK sanctions list in 2022 and barred from entering the country. His assets were frozen in Britain and its overseas territories.
Plahotniuc was accused of involvement in pro-Russian political campaigns and efforts to derail Moldova’s pro-EU course.
Additional sources • AP, AFP
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