Key Takeaways
- Innovative AI Solutions: Aizip, in collaboration with SoftBank, demonstrated AI-powered fish counting and net inspection technology for aquaculture.
- CES® 2025 Recognition: The technology received a CES® 2025 Innovation Award in the Food & AgTech category.
- Edge AI Technology: Developed a compact AI model with a 95% recognition rate, capable of real-time analysis without reliance on external power or connectivity.
- Aquaculture Focus: The solution addresses operational efficiency and risk reduction in fish farming.
- Future Expansion: The technology marks a milestone in applying AI to aquaculture and sets the stage for further adoption in agriculture and other sectors.
Transforming Aquaculture with Edge AI Technology
Aizip, Inc. and SoftBank Corp. announced a significant achievement in deploying AI for aquaculture, showcasing solutions for real-time fish counting and fish-net inspection. This collaborative effort earned the CES® 2025 Innovation Award in the Food & AgTech category, underscoring its potential to revolutionize operations in environments where conventional AI systems face constraints.
Challenges in Aquaculture
The aquaculture industry has been slow to adopt AI compared to other sectors. Tasks such as fish population monitoring and net damage detection, traditionally handled by divers, are both costly and risky. The lack of reliable power sources and network connectivity in ocean environments further complicates the deployment of traditional cloud-based AI solutions, which require real-time data collection and analysis.
Innovative Approach and Results
By combining SoftBank’s computer graphics simulations of fish-schooling behavior to generate training data with Aizip’s TinyML technology, the partnership developed an optimized AI model for edge applications. This AI solution achieved a 95% recognition rate in underwater field tests and is compatible with devices as compact as smartphones.
The AI model, part of the Watatumi software suite, enables fish farmers to perform real-time, accurate analyses without requiring extensive external infrastructure. This capability significantly enhances operational efficiency while reducing costs and risks.
Yuko Ishiwaka, Principal Investigator at SoftBank, highlighted the importance of this milestone: “This demonstration marks a major milestone in applying AI to aquaculture, significantly increasing operational efficiency and reducing risks for farmers.”
Kazuto Suda, Director at SoftBank, added: “Our partnership with Aizip has been incredibly productive, and we look forward to expanding AI technology into more applications.”
Yen-Chi Xu, an AI scientist at Aizip, remarked: “This is just the beginning of AI’s role in aquaculture and other agricultural sectors.”
