Startup develops AI to prevent newborn piglet deaths - Valor International

Artificial intelligence developed by a Brazilian agtech company promises to prevent the deaths of thousands of newborn piglets in farrowing units. Crushing by sows is currently the leading cause of death among these animals on farms, and the technology seeks to anticipate such incidents and prevent losses.

The system created by startup Herdian uses computer-vision cameras to monitor breeding sows’ behavior in real time and prevent them from crushing their piglets.

The AI was trained on more than 6,000 images and 30,000 hours of video to identify patterns in animal behavior. According to Eduardo Dapper, the agtech’s commercial director, initial tests indicated that the model can reduce crushing losses by 2% to 3%.

Of all piglets born in Brazilian farrowing units, 9% die, according to Agriness’s “2025 Annual Report on Swine Production Performance.” Agriness provides management technology for pig farming.

Dapper said excessive rolling by sows is one of the main factors associated with piglet crushing. “When the animal rolls much more than average, the system sends farm employees an alert about a potential problem.”

Alice Ianni, a director at Ianni Agropecuária, installed the technology three months ago at one of the company’s units in Porto Feliz, São Paulo. With both the AI and the staff still in the testing period, the goal is to increase productivity. “The technology was implemented to provide more information for our management because pig farming involves many variables. We need data that helps us make decisions,” she said.

The tests have already identified behavioral patterns and supplemented employees’ observations. Without technological monitoring, she said, an incident is detected only when a piglet cries out as it is being crushed. “There are husbandry practices intended to prevent that. Using the system, we can check whether those practices are being followed correctly,” she said.

Behaviors considered “unacceptable” in the animals generally occur together. According to Dapper, if a sow stops eating and lies on her belly, the piglets cannot reach her teats, affecting their weight gain.

The crushing-prevention technology is part of Herdian’s service for monitoring both breeding sows and newborn piglets. The agtech also generates data to guide farm management. The AI monitors whether sows are eating and drinking water, how close piglets are to their mothers, and whether they are feeding properly, among other factors.

“The system knows what constitutes normal and abnormal behavior. When necessary, alerts are sent to the farrowing-unit supervisor, while reports go to the farm manager,” Dapper explained. The technology worked even at night and when the cameras were slightly dirty, despite reduced machine visibility, he added.

Founded in 2024, Herdian received a R$300,000 angel investment in July 2025 and now serves six major clients, including three farms where system tests are underway. At one farm, losses during farrowing and stillbirths had reached 13%. Dapper said testing has already reduced the rate to 10%. “Our goal is to cut the mortality rate by 50%,” he said.

The company plans to hold a new pre-seed funding round by the end of 2026. It currently monitors 3,000 breeding sows and aims to reach 10,000 by the end of 2027.