A while back we reported on some smartphone and tablet apps for farming, one of which was AgDNA, a mobile farming platform. Turns out its developer was rated one of Lux Research’s Top 10 Innovative Companies for 2015.

Lux Research, a technology research firm based in Boston, profiled 1,189 companies across 20 different emerging technology domains during 2015, and, at the end of the year, selected the 10 companies that are poised to make a significant impact on their target industries.​

AgDNA wins Lux Research’s top innovator award for a mobile farm app that integrates data from equipment into a decision-support system for growers.

AgDNA made the list for the category of Agro Innovation for its “machinery-centered decision support platform for growers.” The mobile app integrates data from existing equipment into a decision-support system for growers. It incorporates farm planning, record keeping, boundary mapping, worked area mapping, live equipment tracking, scouting observations and communication tools.

Lux Research analyst Sara Olson says finding successful business models for precision agriculture has been challenging due to the high cost of adoption. She addressed this issue last year in the report, “Price Challenges Are Blocking Adoption of Sensors in Agriculture,” in which she writes, “Sensors for agriculture can raise yields and improve environmental impact, but new business models and pricing options are needed to reap full benefits.”

Olson writes about how many growers are operating near a break-even point of $4 per bushel, leaving only farms over 2,500 acres in a position to afford new sensor hardware. It’s the same issue that Arama Kukutai, managing director of venture capitalist firm Finistere Ventures, wrote about earlier this month and how ag tech companies will need to prove their value to farmers if they want to stay in business.

According to the Lux Research Top 10 innovator awards, AgDNA has been able to get traction licensing its technology to OEMs like John Deere.

Customers can download the app for free at agdna.com/