BOISE, Idaho — New Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology offers a new way for crop growers to remove weeds from their fields. Traditionally, the task of weeding began with people pulling it by hand.

Is a laser beam the future of farming? A raised rectangular vehicle, slightly smaller than a compact sedan, rolls across farmland and shoots concentrated bursts of infrared light into the rows.

Instead of using chemical products, in the future, weeds will be lethally damaged by laser radiation. Partners in the EU project WeLASER are working to create the basis for this vision. The project ...