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V O L . X X X I N O. X X V § 2 N OV E M B E R 3 , 2 0 2 5 10 the job," Yehia says. "So, we'll improve the jobs, and then we'll improve the way that the people are doing the jobs. We can adjust the roles to min- imize stress and fatigue on the work- ers' part, especially with neurodiverse team members, so that helps reduce turnover, improve performance and elevate people into supervisory roles who were previously excluded from the workforce entirely. It's the machines and the people learning together." Yehia also addresses some miscon- ceptions about AI in the food sector. While some may assume AI leads to artificial food or detaches produc- tion from human expertise, she argues the opposite is true. AI is simply a tool that gathers and interprets data, work- ing alongside farmers and employees to grow food more sustainably, pre- cisely, and with less waste. "I believe AI will help us to grow food in places where we can be land efficient, water efficient and energy efficient," she says. "I think that AI will also help us get the best food possible to the people. I'm also really excited about AI's ability to provide food for cit- ies. ere are so many food deserts across the United States and the globe. It is about using AI to really opti- mize yields and make sure people are getting fed where they live and to increase the resilience of our food system. We're never going to replace traditional agriculture, but we can feed people closer to where they live." » C ONTI NU ED FROM PR EVI OU S PAGE I think that AI will also help us get the best food possible to the people. Nona Yehia, Vertical Harvest Staff in the tomato room at Vertical Harvest. photo caption Drone footage of Vertical Harvest Maine. C O U R T E S Y / PAT R I C K S U L L I VA N

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