Cynthia Zhu, founder of the Agri-AI Business Club and long-time advocate of China–Netherlands cooperation. As a special guest of the WAFI Dialogue, she shared her insights on the signals of an AI breakthrough in agriculture, the lessons of policy collaboration, and her joint efforts with WAFI to drive digital transformation across global agrifood systems.

From Telecom to Agriculture: A Cross-Boundary Journey

Cynthia began her career in the Dutch telecom industry, where she witnessed the shift from fixed to mobile networks. That transformation shaped her understanding of connection and resource integration—principles that later guided her into agriculture.

When IoT reshaped industries, she noticed that agriculture was lagging behind in digital adoption. AI tools were often confined to pilots within large enterprises, leaving small and mid-sized farms excluded.

She reflected that agriculture is a deeply interconnected system where digital transformation can create profound impact—from soil to climate—but the adoption gap, especially for smallholders, remains a critical challenge.

In 2024, drawing on her Dutch corporate and academic networks, she founded the Agri-AI Business Club to bridge this gap. The Club’s goal is to move AI from lab to land, integrating technology with farm needs and lowering barriers for smallholders.

Figure 1: Agri-AI Business Club Meeting

At WAFI2024, Cynthia presented the idea that agricultural AI is nearing a tipping point, sparking wide resonance. Ahead of WAFI2025, she returns to the WAFI Dialogue series with new perspectives on policy, collaboration, and ecosystem building.

Q&A with Cynthia Zhu

Signals—Agricultural AI’s Breakthrough

Q: At WAFI2024, you noted that agricultural AI was close to a tipping point. What signals will define its breakthrough, and when might we see it?

Cynthia Zhu: I believe the breakthrough will come when AI tools are no longer limited to pilot projects but enter everyday farming. They also need to be affordable and easy to use, especially for smallholders. At the same time, we must have reliable data platforms that allow smooth collection, sharing, and analysis. And of course, clear policy and regulatory frameworks are essential to guide innovation and attract investment.

These conditions are coming together faster than expected. Advances in generative AI, the integration of sensors and robotics, major institutional investments, and growing food security concerns are accelerating adoption. Taken together,the period from 2025 to 2027 could be decisive. If policy and investment align, the pace of change will be even faster.

Collaboration—Key to Global Synergy

Q: When you compare Chinese and Dutch policy environments, what differences do you see, and what lessons can China draw?

Cynthia Zhu: The Netherlands benefits from strong public–private partnerships, transparent regulation, and policies that consistently prioritize sustainability. These create trust and encourage innovation. In China and many developing countries, adoption is often driven by top-down policies and large integrators, which helps scale fast but also highlights challenges such as uneven data standards and limited solutions for small farms.

The key lesson is that importing technology is not enough. Ecosystem building matters most. At Agri-AI Club, we work bridge enterprises, farms, and governments. We run pilots to adapt tools to local conditions, help companies engage in setting data standards, and facilitate exchanges so that Dutch partnership models can be localized in China.

WAFI as a Bridge—Facilitating Global Collaboration

Q: As a global platform, what role should WAFI play in international cooperation on agricultural AI?

Cynthia Zhu: WAFI is more than a forum—it is a bridge. It can connect Dutch expertise in precision farming with China’s scale and AI capabilities, while also including the realities of developing countries. It can foster knowledge exchange, align global standards, and—most importantly—move from discussion to action.

At WAFI2025, I hope to see initiatives like a “Smallholder AI Empowerment Program,” where WAFI provides the platform and Agri-AI Club leads implementation with partners. That could mean developing low-cost soil monitoring tools for small farmers or convening policy roundtables on data flows. WAFI builds the network, and we enterprises ensure local grounding. Together, that creates real impact.

Agri-AI Club’s Mission—Empowering All Farms, Not Just the Big Players

Q: What is the mission of Agri-AI Club, and how does it align with WAFI’s vision of resilient food systems?

Cynthia Zhu: Our mission is to make AI accessible not only large corporations. We focus on integration rather than invention, connecting technology resources, setting practical standards, and training farmers.

For example, we build domain-specific AI models tailored to different crops and climates, while also offering free training so that small and mid-sized farms can adopt tools without high barriers. WAFI amplifies this by embedding our “AI Toolbox for Smallholders” into its global platform. Farmers in Africa or Southeast Asia could benefit from tools tested in China and the Netherlands, while their feedback helps improve solutions globally. This is how resilience is built—through open collaboration.

Figure 2: Agri-AI Business Club Meeting

Scaling AI—Tailoring Solutions for Different Farm Sizes

Q: You’ve written about “domain” and “scaling laws.” How do these ideas guide farms of different sizes, and what role can WAFI play?

Cynthia Zhu: Many AI projects fail because they overlook either domain or scale. AI models must be tailored to specific crops, soils, and climates. At the same time, ignoring scale differences is also a major issue. Larger datasets and computing power improve performance, which means large enterprises can develop custom models. But they also carry responsibility—to share pre-trained models with the wider industry. Smaller farms, in turn, can adopt modular tools through shared platforms without building models themselves.

WAFI can create a collaborative framework that makes this possible. It can encourage companies to share models under clear data governance and connect our domain-specific model library with its global farm network. This way, farms of all sizes and geographies can find solutions suited to their needs.

Toward a Shared Future

From her early career in telecoms to her current leadership in agricultural AI, Cynthia Zhu has always focused on the power of connection. With Agri-AI Club, she is now building an ecosystem that reflects WAFI’s mission of collaboration and resilience.

As she puts it: “The breakthrough of agricultural AI is not a solo act. The value of WAFI2025 lies in bringing Dutch technology, Chinese scale, and the needs of developing countries together at one table.”

We thank Cynthia for her valuable insights. Her perspectives on agricultural AI, China–Netherlands cooperation, and ecosystem building enrich the WAFI Dialogue and set the stage for impactful discussions at WAFI2025.

WAFI Dialogue explored the signals of agricultural AI’s breakthrough, the differences in international policy. As a global platform, WAFI continues to focus on the frontier of agrifood innovation. We are committed to centering key topics in these dialogues, gathering global wisdom, and driving collaborative change.

Diverse voices pursue sustainable future pathways for the future. If you are interested in the WAFI Dialogue, contact us at office@wafiforum.com.

WAFI2025 Conference will be convened under the theme "Resilient Food Supply For Agrifood Systems Transformation" from October 12-15, 2025, in Pinggu, Beijing. The conference will feature an opening ceremony, plenary sessions, thematic forums, parallel meetings, side events, innovation showcases, and an expo.