FarmSense, a California-based pest management and insect monitoring platform company, has been awarded USD 275,000 in Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) funding, with the potential to expand to up to USD 2 million, to create an end-to-end digital mosquito surveillance platform for farmers.

This development follows the issuance of a health advisory by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention due to multiple cases of malaria in the US for the first time since 2003. The project also aims to reduce diseases like West Nile, Eastern Encephalitis, and Zika.

The project also aims to provide researchers with tools to understand better mosquito-borne diseases, including measuring the effectiveness of attractants and repellents, developing new treatments and technologies for mosquito control, and reducing overall pesticide use.

Founded in 2016, FarmSense helps farmers with pest management and insect monitoring through its patented FlightSensor technology, which provides real-time insect counts and classifications, enabling farmers to make decisions about crop and pest management. FlightSensor uses computational entomology, AI, machine learning, and real-time analytics to improve insect monitoring methods. FarmSense has also received awards and grants from organizations such as Microsoft, Google, US Department of Defense, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the National Science Foundation, the US Department of Agriculture, the National Institutes of Health, and others.