Koidra

Koidra operates as an intelligent automation company, providing artificial intelligence of things (AIoT) solutions with a principal market focus on the high-tech greenhouse industry. The company was founded in 2020 by CEO Kenneth Tran, who was joined by co-founder Doan H. Based in Seattle, Washington, Koidra also serves the biomass energy and food processing sectors.

The inspiration for Koidra stems from founder Kenneth Tran's background, which combines a family history in manufacturing with deep expertise in machine learning. While architecting his family's wood pellet factory, he encountered firsthand the limitations of conventional operational technology and data analytics. This experience, coupled with his work as a Principal Applied Scientist at Microsoft Research, drove him to merge machine learning with industrial control. A significant catalyst was Tran's success in the Autonomous Greenhouse Challenge. Leading the Microsoft team, he won the inaugural competition in 2018, demonstrating that an AI-driven approach could outperform expert human growers. This achievement highlighted the potential for intelligent automation to transform controlled environment agriculture (CEA) and led directly to the formation of Koidra.

Koidra's business model centers on its Intelligent Automation Suite, which integrates advanced machine learning, IoT technologies, and principles from physics to optimize manufacturing processes. This platform is designed to augment human expertise, not replace it, enabling facilities to enhance control, scale operations, and improve sustainability. The company generates revenue by deploying its tiered product offerings to clients in horticulture and other industrial sectors. In March 2022, Koidra secured $4.5 million in a seed funding round led by Ospraie Ag Science, with participation from Amritam Holdings, Cavallo Ventures, and Foothill Ventures, to accelerate its product development and market expansion.

The company offers two main products: DataPilot and KoPilot. DataPilot is an advanced analytics solution that centralizes operational data from various sensors and systems into a single dashboard. It provides real-time monitoring, data visualization, and smart alerts, allowing operators to derive actionable insights from complex datasets. KoPilot is the AI-powered core of the platform, an autonomous control system that manages climate and irrigation in real-time. It uses adaptive control strategies based on environmental conditions and crop needs to adjust setpoints for lighting, temperature, CO2, and other variables, thereby increasing yield and optimizing resource usage. Koidra's technology is designed for seamless integration with existing control systems, making it adaptable to a wide range of facilities and crops.

Keywords: intelligent automation, autonomous growing, controlled environment agriculture, greenhouse automation, agtech, AIoT, industrial IoT, precision agriculture, crop management, sustainable agriculture, data analytics, machine learning, operational efficiency, climate control, food processing automation, biomass energy, yield optimization, resource management, real-time control, industrial automation software, horticultural technology, smart farming