Agritech start-up OmniEye raises $1.6million in seed funding

Dunedin-based agritech company OmniEye – makers of a revolutionary automated on-farm livestock monitoring system – has raised $1.6million in seed funding to help commercialise the technology.

Powered by cutting-edge artificial intelligence software, OmniEye uses a non-intrusive on-farm camera and monitoring system to collect tens of thousands of data points from every cow, every day to provide farmers with a clearer picture of the overall health of their herd. It is currently being used on more than 20 dairy farms (around 20,000 cows), including 10 Pāmu Farms, around New Zealand.

The first product – OmniEye Locomotion – allows for early detection of lameness and drafting of animals, resulting in less suffering and less costly interventions and culling. The videos feed into a reporting dashboard that delivers a 0 (healthy) to 3 (very lame) score for each cow, providing farmers with individual lameness information after each milking. This information can be used for drafting cows that need treatment, or provided to a vet to remotely diagnose other issues.

OmniEye co-founder and CEO Greg Peyroux says the seed raise will allow the company to complete their paid on-farm pilot and further refine the technology before it moves towards fully commercialising the product. The company aims to extend the technology across New Zealand’s dairy farms by the end of the year.

“Our pilot farms are already finding the system really useful. Farmers like being able to observe the herd at any time from their phone or computer, and when there’s a locomotion issue identified with a cow, they see it early, which better informs treatment options.

“As we grow the number of farms where OmniEye is making a difference, we are continuing to fine-tune the technology to ensure the best possible experience for our farmers. We’re delighted that we’ve been able to secure some solid investment that will help take the technology to the next stage of our journey towards commercialisation.” 

Co-founder and Chief Technology Officer Benoit Auvray says the company also has plans to expand the technology into overseas markets, a move that will be assisted by OmniEye’s Directors, including Colin Brown, founder of international agricultural GPS company TracMap; Peter Mitchell, founder of international pet food company Ziwi; and Chris Dark, an experienced and successful international tech entrepreneur.

Says Benoit Auvray: “Lameness is a huge issue for farmers, not only in New Zealand but around the world. It costs millions each year in lost production and is also a major animal welfare issue.

“The system is already as accurate as vets and experts at scoring lameness, at minimal cost to farmers, and is continuously improving itself as more data is collected. With an artificial intelligence system, there is a compounding effect: every new farm on which OmniEye is installed increases the value of the system for all existing and future customers.”

The company is keen to hear from more farmers interested in using OmniEye to increase productivity and animal welfare.