On the outskirts of the southern Chinese city of Guangzhou, a recent media visit to agritech firm XAG revealed more than a showcase of agricultural gadgets. It pointed to a structural shift in how farming is being done — in China and increasingly beyond it.
What is emerging is not simply a new generation of tools, but a different model of agriculture, shaped by the need to produce more with fewer inputs—less labor, less water, and greater precision.
An autonomous ground rover performs a test run at the XAG Super Farm, demonstrating its spraying function in Guangzhou, south China's Guangdong Province, on March 25, 2026. (Photo: Liu Xiaodi/South)
At the demonstration site, that shift took multiple forms. Drones carried out spraying and seeding tasks with interchangeable payloads. A lightweight electric ground vehicle moved through orchard rows, operating autonomously and adapting to uneven terrain. Nearby, irrigation and fertilization systems were managed remotely, with sensors tracking pressure, flow, and nutrient levels in real time.
Individually, these tools address familiar inefficiencies in farming. Together, they begin to standardize processes that have long depended on manual judgment—when to irrigate, how much to apply, and how evenly inputs are distributed across a field.
A modified rice transplanter equipped with an autonomous navigation system operates at the XAG Super Farm in Guangzhou, south China's Guangdong Province, on March 25, 2026. (Photo: Liu Xiaodi/South)
The appeal is not limited to one country. According to the company, XAG's technologies are now used in more than 60 countries and regions, across a wide range of farming conditions.
In the United States, Justin Gong, co-founder of XAG, said early reactions from farmers were largely dismissive. "When we first went there, many farmers thought our drones were just toys — too small to be useful," he said.
That perception has shifted as the technology has improved. "As efficiency increased, they started to use them in real operations," Gong said. "Now in some regions, farmers are buying them and using them on a daily basis."
A smart agricultural drone sprays crops at the XAG Super Farm in Guangzhou, south China's Guangdong Province, on March 25, 2026. (Photo: Liu Xiaodi/South)
Gong recalled a conversation at an industry event in the U.S., where a farmer approached him amid discussions of potential restrictions on Chinese drone technology.
"He told me they've really benefited from these drones, and a ban would directly affect their operations," Gong said, adding that some farmers had even discussed organizing to push back against the restrictions.
"The logic is simple," he said. "Farmers want lower costs and higher efficiency — that matters more than where the technology comes from."
Reporter & Photographer | Liu Xiaodi
