Aldrin Sojourner “Soj” Gamayon. Photo courtesy of Soj Gamayon

MANILA -- A 22-year-old student secured the first victory for the Philippines in the Red Bull Basement 2024 World Final last December by presenting an innovative solution that would assist Filipino farmers in safeguarding their crops from risks like pests, soil moisture, and unpredictable weather, among others.

Aldrin Sojourner “Soj” Gamayon is a fourth year Communications Technology Management at Ateneo De Manila University who innovated an artificial intelligence (AI)-driven platform called AgriConnect PH, which aims to help smallhold farmers and agribusinesses manage their risks.

Red Bull Basement, which took place last Dec. 2 to 5 in Tokyo, Japan, is an annual pitching competition that enables young innovators and entrepreneurs to utilize AI in developing significant, solutions-oriented products.

Last year's program highlighted the revolutionary capacity of AI to tackle global concerns, especially in agriculture, environmental sustainability, and public health.

According to the host's website, the winner will receive an exclusive opportunity to attend a three-week Accelerator Program in Los Angeles and Silicon Valley, the global hub for technological innovation.

Participants will present their ideas to industry leaders and benefit from personalized mentorship by Plug and Play VC, a prominent venture capital firm focused on investing in startups.

Before the World Final, Gamayon won the Red Bull Basement Philippines last October where he competed against 3,600 ideas.

Local judges selected national finalists for the World Final based on Business Potential, Uniqueness of Idea, Founder Profile, and Feasibility.

According to the student innovator, his platform works in three steps: farmers plant smart sensors in the four corners of each acre of land, which can detect risks like water level, soil moisture, and insect movement.

“And then from then on, the second step is it gets sent to the app. And then, the app has ‘yung AI. So, from the sensor, which collects the data, the data will be interpreted du’n sa AI. And it uses a very straightforward process through a traffic light system,” the 22-year-old student said.

Soj Gamayon at the Red Bull Basement competition. Jason Halayko, Red Bull Content Pool

The traffic light system has three indicators: red means the sensor detected a serious threat, yellow means mild, and green means normal.

For the third step, the farmer or the agribusiness owner acts on the insight.

“What really inspired me to work on this problem is, currently kasi walang current process ‘yung mga farmers to detect early, to detect fast. And being early and being fast really matters in agriculture,” Gamayon said.

After facing a few bumps in the road on the big day, the young innovator was shaken in surprise when he clinched the victory for the Philippines.

He was the sole Asian to compete against a staggering 110,000 pitches from 39 countries.

“I was not expecting to win because I had a higher purpose for me. Like, winning would be such an extra,” he said.

For him, pitching AgriConnect PH is rooted in his passion for helping farmers who are left high and dry, even though they are the backbone supplying the people's needs.

“I think my goal that I've been setting for myself is I aim to empower 1 million farmers by 2035 by [the] book or by crook. If that means getting more partnerships with mga NGOs as well or government agencies to make that happen, that's really my goal,” Soj explained.

Currently, the young innovator seeks developers to help him turn the prototype into a functional one.

“By [the] end of March, I hope I have a working, functional prototype na because I need that for April because I'm heading to Stanford [University] for a summit. And then, again, for May to June for ‘yung actual Red Bull Prize na ma-immerse sa Silicon Valley,” Gamayon said.

In Stanford, he hopes to gain more knowledge from mentors and build connections as well.

Beyond the fields of agriculture, Gamayon is eager to explore and innovate an AI platform designed to empower freelancers like himself, wherein it aims to streamline its regulation and ensure that fair pay is no longer a pipe dream.

“If you have an idea, just write it down. Because I understand na mga Gen Z sometimes are very impulsive. I always tell people to not think, just do, parang we get easily demotivated. Pero, if you figure it out along the way, as long as you just took the first step, I think that's what matters to make it happen,” the young innovator advised Gen Zs.