Interview: Revital Kremer is Chief Technology Officer at SupPlant
Revital Kremer is Chief Technology Officer at SupPlant, a company whose vision is to digitally inform every irrigation decision on earth. By using plant sensing, AI, and accumulated data, SupPlant provides farmers with climate-adaptive practices, insights and actions that drive better decision-making, backed by its dedicated team of agronomists.
At SupPlant, Kremer developed the technology that is being used around the world by farmers to fight climate change and food security: she helps farmers use less water to grow more fruit, using AI and the largest plant database in the world. Kremer shares her story of how she entered the industry and provides some useful guidance to help others along the way.
Kremer spoke to New AG International's Editor Janet Kanters as part of our second Women in AG e-book.
It’s a pleasure to speak with you. To start at the beginning, have you always been involved in the agriculture sector?
Revital Kremer: I've been involved in the agtech world only since August 2020 when I joined SupPlant. Before that, I handled different R&D roles in many other domains. I served in technical positions in gaming, defense companies, NMS, and more.
I must admit the agricultural sector makes me most passionate about my job and the feeling that I can literally do something good for our planet is thrilling.
What inspired you to work in this industry?
Technology can be fascinating, and the ability to solve problems with it is my main drive since I started in this business.
On top of that, as I mentioned earlier, the opportunity to have a sustainable impact on food security and water scarcity drives my passion for every step I take in my day-to-day job.
I feel that the agtech domain, and SupPlant in particular, is the first time I’ve built technology that really makes a difference, and can help farmers overcome water scarcity and climate changes. Tomorrow changed. And we help them cope.
Do you have any guidance to offer other women who may want to follow in your footsteps?
No doubt that both high-tech and agriculture are man-dominated arenas. However, it is only matter of finding the right company with the right culture that embraces diversity and measures employees by professionalism and not by gender or demographic parameters.
I feel very fortunate to have this opportunity in SupPlant and to have a major impact on our planet's future along with an impact (even if it is a minor one) on women’s roles in
this industry.
Within your career at SupPlant, can you share some insights on your role and responsibilities?
SupPlant R&D is divided into four pillars – SW, Infrastructure, HW and AI. Our common goal is to provide our customers a smart SaaS product, delivered to the client with a simple, easy to understand interface.
We provide our clients with a high-end SaaS product based on sensors that gives our farmers clear visibility to their produce and helps them get through extreme events. Additionally, we cover small-holder farmers' needs by providing a sensor-less solution called simply ‘Plant’, that is concluded from our historical data and smart models.
What lessons have you learned along the way within your career?
Always say yes to new opportunities! Don’t be afraid to jump into the cold water. Eventually it is either not that cold or you will manage to swim in it.
Do something meaningful. It makes your everyday life a lot more rewarding. Here is a cheat sheet to know if what you are doing is meaningful: do you like telling it to your/other kids? If the answer is "yes", you are in the right place.
What do you think we can do as an industry to mitigate the gender imbalance and help encourage more women into leadership roles?
I think that we should acknowledge the genetical differences between men and women. We are truly different.
BUT, understand that this does not predict success in tech roles.
I don’t have to run faster or be physically stronger to lead a group of tech guys/girls.
This mindset should reside in both tech company leadership but also in each and every one of us, women in this tech domain.
Environment should be more encouraging AND women should believe in themselves, should not be afraid to get out of their comfort zone, and worry a little bit less of how this will affect the house
and kids.
Do you feel SupPlant is a company that empowers women and allows them to grow to the best of their ability?
100 percent yes! The numbers speak for themselves.
Fifty percent of high management roles (c-levels) are occupied by women; and there is one woman for every two men specifically in the R&D department (cross domains). ●
Read more from New AG International's Women in AG e-book, here.
Read more on Water-soluble Fertilizers, here.
And read the SEP/OCT 2022 edition of New AG International, here.