What Is AI?

A new educational series exploring agricultural innovations, starting with artificial intelligence and expanding to precision agriculture, sustainable practices, and emerging technologies shaping modern farming.

Join us for the second breakfast in our educational series on:

Friday, February 20th, 2026

8:30-10:40 AM

$20 includes buffet breakfast

AI on The Farm and Beyond -- Graphic Draft 2 (1).png

DAAHA is committed to supporting local agriculture through education and community. Thanks to generous donor support, we've been able to develop this educational breakfast series for Illinois farmers.

You've heard about Artificial Intelligence on the news, but what does it actually mean for your operation? While tech companies race to develop AI, farmers are asking practical questions:

KEY QUESTIONS WE WILL ADDRESS:

Will this help me make better decisions?

Understanding AI's decision-support capabilities

What's realistic for my operation?

Honest discussion about practical applications

Can it improve my efficiency?

Real examples of time and resource savings

Our Panel Discussion

From Data to Dirt: How is AI Transforming On-Farm Decisions?

Synopsis generated using AI: Artificial intelligence is giving farmers a powerful new tool to make smarter, more timely growing decisions. By analyzing weather patterns, soil conditions, satellite imagery, and historical yield data, AI can help producers determine when to plant, how much to apply, where variability exists within a field, and when to intervene to protect crop health. Rather than replacing farmer expertise, AI enhances it—turning complex data into clear, actionable insights that reduce risk, improve yields, and support long-term stewardship of the land. This session explores practical, real-world ways farmers are using AI today to make informed decisions from planting through harvest.What do farmers need to know? What is the Promise of AI? What needs to happen to close the education gap and knowledge gap for those who study agronomy without farm experience, vs. those who grew up working on a farm. How can AI address certain challenges and what are the risks of using AI?

Featured Speaker: Ryan Gilbert
KissanAI - Agriculture Product Lead; DeepRoot Strategies, LLC.

Ryan will provide a practical, thought-provoking discussion centered on the real questions farmers and ag professionals are asking about AI.

Gilbert’s presentation will address:

What farmers need to know now about artificial intelligence and emerging ag technologies
The promise of AI in improving decision-making, efficiency, and long-term sustainability
Closing the education and knowledge gap between those who study horticulture or agriculture academically and those who grew up working on a farm
How AI can help bridge experience gaps, translate data into actionable insights, and support both new and legacy producers
The risks of using AI, including data reliability, over-automation, and the importance of human judgment in agricultural decisions

“AI has enormous potential in agriculture, but only if it’s understood and applied thoughtfully,” Gilbert said. “The goal isn’t to replace experience — it’s to complement it, especially as the next generation of ag professionals enters the workforce from very different backgrounds.”

Featured Speaker: Kyle Rust, CHS

Kyle Rust is a Data Scientist on the AI Center of Excellence team at CHS, where he develops and deploys machine learning solutions across the organization. Since joining CHS in 2020, he has supported the company in multiple roles, including three data-focused internships, before transitioning to a full-time position.

His work at CHS spans retrieval-augmented generation, computer vision, time series forecasting, and the integration of enterprise tools to support scalable model monitoring and governance. Kyle holds a Bachelor of Science in Computer Engineering from Montana State University and a Master of Science in Computer Science from Northern Arizona University, with academic research focused on binary classification and optimizing deep neural networks for heavily imbalanced datasets.

Featured Speaker: Peter Creticos, Institute for Work and the Economy.

The Institute’s most recent work focuses on the use of AI in the workplace, fair access in employment, and fostering R&D for soy-based non-food products. Dr. Creticos has served in several senior positions in state and local government, and in national and state non-government organizations. Dr. Creticos earned his Ph.D. for his research on job matching at Northwestern University’s McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. He has a Master of Management from Northwestern’s Kellogg Graduate School of Management, a Master of Arts in Political Science from the University of Missouri at St. Louis, and a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy from Washington University in St. Louis.

Featured Speaker: Kevin Monk

Kevin Monk grew up on his family corn and soybean farm in Central Illinois. He graduated from the University of Illinois with a B.S. degree in Agriculture
Mechanization. After graduation, he spent 11 years with John Deere in several different marketing roles. Kevin then spent four years with CNH focusing on precision agriculture, where he led the marketing and product management activities. He also headed up the Ag Information Group for Sustainable Oils where he led global company efforts around data strategy. In addition to working on his family Farm, Kevin is a consultant in the ag industry working with various businesses assessing market potential and growth projections for ag innovation, recommending go-to-market plans for entering into new opportunities, and managing intervention strategies for market development activities.

Kevin holds an MBA from the University of Iowa and a master’s in agriculture economics from the University of Illinois and is currently a PhD student at The Ohio State University in Food, Agriculture and Biological Engineering.