Key Takeaways
- Square Roots has introduced Sage, an AI-powered assistant built to support both new and experienced farmers in controlled environment agriculture (CEA).
- Sage is integrated into Square Roots’ proprietary Farmer Toolbelt Operating System, offering real-time, task-specific guidance.
- The AI assistant aims to streamline operations by replacing static documentation with dynamic, conversational support.
- Sage was developed using AWS Bedrock and custom-trained on internal farming data from years of harvests and operations.
- The launch represents the company’s first major step toward broader AI integration across its indoor farming systems.
Sage: Square Roots Introduces AI Copilot for Controlled Environment Agriculture
Square Roots has announced the launch of Sage, an artificial intelligence assistant embedded in its farming platform. Designed as a digital copilot, Sage is intended to make complex agricultural tasks more accessible by delivering contextual, task-specific support to Square Roots’ farmers in real time.
Sage is available inside the company’s Farmer Toolbelt Operating System, a proprietary software platform developed to manage crop production, monitor climate conditions, and guide farm operations. Farmers can interact with Sage to ask questions related to harvesting, equipment handling, system cleaning, and other daily tasks—without having to consult lengthy documentation or standard operating procedures.
“Farming is hard… CEA adds additional complexity,” Tobias Peggs, CEO and Co-founder of Square Roots, noted in its announcement. “That’s why we built Sage: to cut through the noise and surface the right information at the right time.”
Designed for Practical Use in the Field
Sage currently operates as a chatbot, trained on internal datasets from tens of thousands of harvest cycles, including historical documentation, procedural insights, and operational data collected since Square Roots was founded. According to the company, the assistant is optimized for speed, clarity, and relevance to on-the-ground challenges.
The platform was developed using AWS Bedrock and integrated with Amazon Lambda, forming a custom chatbot within the Toolbelt OS. The long-term vision for Sage, according to the company, is to support farming teams with increasingly intuitive and accurate AI capabilities.
AI Integration Reflects Strategic Long-Term Planning
The decision to build Sage comes after years of foundational work by Square Roots to create a data-rich, AI-compatible architecture. While early AI tools were deemed unsuitable for real-time use in farm operations, the company states that it has consistently prepared for the eventual deployment of AI through systematic data collection and process refinement.
“On day one at Square Roots, we determined that AI stacks at that point in time were too slow and clunky… but we designed the information architecture to start capturing data sets with this inevitable future in mind,” Tobias Peggs shared.
Collaborative Development and Team Acknowledgments After Launching Sage
Square Roots credited the development of Sage to a collaborative internal effort, naming Saketh Vasamsetti, Simrun Singh Heir, and Mark D. Thompson, along with contributions from farming teams, plant scientists, and technicians across the organization. These teams provided ongoing feedback and operational context throughout the design process.
The launch marks a shift in the company’s digital strategy—from foundational systems to user-facing AI applications—and is positioned as a first step in broader technology-driven enhancements across its indoor farming operations.
Square Roots
Square Roots is an indoor farming platform designed to support agricultural research and specialty crop production. The company collaborates with commercial and non-commercial organizations to enable year-round, controlled trials and crop development.
Headquartered in New York City and operating five commercial-scale facilities across the Midwest, Square Roots supports research in response to climate challenges and promotes the exploration of plant production for both food and alternative applications.
1 Comment