The fourth agricultural revolution (4AR), or Agriculture 4.0, refers to the anticipated changes from new technologies, particularly the use of artificial intelligence (AI) to make smarter planning decisions and for better integration of robotics. Intelligent machines could be used for growing and harvesting crops, weeding, milking livestock and distributing agrochemicals via drones. Other farming-specific technologies include new types of gene-editing tools to develop higher yielding, disease-resistant crops, vertical farming, and synthetic lab-grown meat.

A quick tour through Bangladesh's rural areas in December 2021 convinced me that productivity gains and income growth can happen faster if digital technologies are harnessed to improve crop yields, minimise losses, and enhance post-production operations. All major branches of the agricultural sector—including agronomy, horticulture, forestry, livestock, fisheries, and commercial farming—will be impacted.