Exo Expert

Exo Expert, founded in 2022 and based in Écully, France, operates at the intersection of drone technology and sustainable agriculture. The company was established by four engineers from INSA Lyon and the Agro Dijon Institute, including co-founders Timothée Craig and Alan Usseglio. The firm emerged from an incubation period within Groupama Rhône-Alpes Auvergne's innovation unit before launching as an independent entity.

The core of Exo Expert's business is providing high-precision farm mapping solutions to the agricultural sector. Utilizing drones equipped with specialized cameras that capture invisible radiation like infrared, the company generates detailed cartographical analyses of farmland. This data offers insights into soil nature and crop conditions, which is significantly more precise than satellite imagery. The primary service empowers farmers to optimize fertilizer application, specifically nitrogen, by identifying the exact needs of different areas within a plot. This precision agriculture approach helps farmers comply with increasingly strict regulations on fertilizer use, providing them with a defensible report in case of audits. The business model centers on providing these drone-based services, which reportedly save clients an average of €40 per hectare. By late 2023, the company served between 400 and 600 farmers, covering 40,000 hectares annually.

Exo Expert's services cater to several client types. For farmers of crops like wheat, barley, and rapeseed, the company offers fertilization modulation maps. In a partnership with sprayer manufacturer Berthoud, it provides surveying services for vineyards to help reduce product usage. The company also extends its offerings to insurance companies with an iPad application designed to accurately assess crop damage from weather events or wildlife. To manage its operations across France, Exo Expert employs a network of up to 37 remote drone pilots during peak periods, in addition to its core team.

Keywords: agricultural technology, drone mapping, precision agriculture, sustainable farming, crop fertilization, soil analysis, farm data management, vineyard surveying, crop damage assessment, nitrogen modulation, agricultural drones, infrared mapping, agritech France, farm optimization, environmental compliance agriculture, drone services, crop monitoring, agricultural analytics, smart farming, fertilization management