Today, the agri-food industry is one of the most vital and complex industries. Many agri-food supply chain companies face critical challenges spanning the entire supply chain, from balancing supply and demand to managing inbound and outbound logistics. As a result, they seek the most scalable, extensive, and cost-effective solutions to enhance the overall success of their businesses. The challenges in this domain have given rise to tech-advanced companies that are utilizing the latest technologies to deliver outstanding and meticulous results at an effective price.
One such market leader spearheading the agri-food domain with transformative business solutions is SWARM Engineering, a fully-virtual organization that began in Southern California in 2016. Their SaaS solutions harness the power of artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML) and complex algorithms to identify and address the rising challenges in agri-food supply chains. SWARM plays a pioneering role in transforming the way people define, solve, and manage challenges in their organization.
A Journey Full of Commitment
SWARM was created with the aim of solving problems instead of simply highlighting them. This means transforming the traditional analytics approach to allow companies to compare all solutions to find the best possible outcome for the organization as a whole. This is achieved by leveraging the advantage of data from new sources such as IoT devices and satellite images, and the rapidly evolving AI and ML algorithms.
For example, their first project saw SWARM identify and solve a combinatorial math problem of blending ingredients for a major food consumer brand where there were potentially trillions of options and limited time to make the best decision.
The Power of SaaS Solutions
The SWARM SaaS product suite has three core elements. The first is the SWARM Challenge Modeler. This unique tool enables users to define a problem in the organization simply by answering a set of questions in predefined templates built by subject matter experts. These templates are incredibly flexible so users can complete and edit the template or create their own definition from scratch. The user can then publish the results into an easily-digestible document that can be shared with multiple stakeholders.
The second element of the solution is the SWARM Solution Engine, a sophisticated multi-agent system that runs an array of algorithms to solve defined challenges. It is fully scalable and can combine multiple optimizations to solve end-to-end holistic processes, not by just solving problems in silos, but by offering solutions that produce the optimum outcome for the entire organization.
The end user interacts with the SWARM Solution Engine via the third piece of the product suite, the SWARM Ops Dashboard. The dashboard utilizes an easy-to-use and intuitive interface which allows users to run solutions, change parameters, create “what-if” scenarios, and ultimately publish executable plans to other users or applications.
Leading the Charge
Anthony Howcroft is leading the charge at SWARM. With over 25 years’ experience in the tech space – including running Microsoft’s Big Data in EMEA for five years – Anthony’s passion for innovation led him to a role at an incubator where he mentored C-level execs at startups, and met with executives at big corporates to identify gaps in their portfolio, and launch companies to meet their future needs.
Following a conversation with GE, Anthony’s team decided to explore the potential of using multi-agent systems with AI and ML to solve industrial problems. From this idea, the seed of SWARM was born, and Anthony was the pioneer to take this concept and bring it into fruition.
Creativity is Key
At his core, Anthony is a creator, whether that is of a company, a product, or a prize-winning piece of writing. For him, seeing a product come together from a series of whiteboard sessions, some sketches, and a PowerPoint, is beyond exciting. His passion and creativity stem from seeing his customers experiencing the product and using it to deliver lasting value to their organization.
When asked about his creativity, Anthony says, “There are too many people that take pleasure in destroying things. I think at heart most entrepreneurs are creators, they want to build and improve the world, to leave it a better place because of the efforts of themselves and their teams. What motivates me is to keep learning, improving, creating, and seeing the fruits of that labor inspiring others.”
A Note for Budding Entrepreneurs
Anthony’s advice for other budding entrepreneurs? Ensure that any investors truly believe in your mission and are in it for the long term. Regarding this, he says, “It is tempting to take whatever money is on offer when you are at the early stages and working hard to keep your company afloat. The right investor, though, will transform your company and work through the hard times with you”.
Continued Growth in Changing Times
During the journey from 2016 to today, there have been numerous moments for SWARM to celebrate. From winning new clients, making key hires, and successfully closing each funding round – the milestones have come in droves for SWARM.
Despite a global pandemic, SWARM have continued to grow. Whilst Covid-19 was a major problem for many of its target customers, the impact it had on the agri-food industry only emphasized the importance of the food supply chain, and the challenge that disruption brings. This was a turning point for the company.
“The focus is continually on growth, and if you continue to win and keep new customers, you are doing something right,” Anthony says.
Envisaging A Bright Future
Organizations today are very focused on solutions, but as Einstein once said, the importance of clearly defining a problem is critical. SWARM aims to help everyday people get better at defining problems and letting AI solve these challenges automatically.
People are great at asking questions, and AI is superb at answering them. SWARM want to play to these strengths to form a better partnership between humans and machines. After all, the food supply chain is such a fundamental part of the world, with so many opportunities to improve, what a perfect place to make your mark. But it doesn’t end there…
There are other industries that could do with a hand too, but for now, we are laser-focused on agri-food,” says Anthony.
