Researchers plan to create a virtual replica of Australia’s agricultural landscapes to better support decision making through prediction models and scenario testing
The Australasian Space Innovation Institute (ASII) recently launched a $15 million initiative to create a virtual replica of Australia’s agricultural landscapes, through satellite images, climate data, and farm system models.
The National Digital Twin for Australian Agriculture project will deliver the first national-scale sovereign, AI-enabled virtual copy of Australia’s agricultural landscape, enabling coordinated decision-making and innovation for the industry.
The Digital Twin’s capabilities will support predictive scenario modelling across climate resilience, biosecurity, water management and productivity, allowing decision-makers to test options, anticipate risks and refine actions before they are implemented.
From stress-testing crops against extreme weather to simulating disease outbreaks and natural disasters, the Digital Twin’s scenario modelling capabilities will equip farmers with better advice and tools to improve their operations and understand the impacts of these situations.
“Australia has world-class agricultural, forestry and fisheries capability, but we lack a shared national capability to turn that strength into decision-ready insight at scale,” ASII founding CEO and managing director Professor Andy Koronios says.
“The National Digital Twin provides that missing layer – a sovereign, AI-enabled environment where Australia can model scenarios, test outcomes, and make better decisions across productivity, resilience and policy.”
Value add
With its predictive scenario modelling capabilities, the National Digital Twin – which has been supported by Elders, Meat & Livestock Australia and Charles Sturt University – will help to refine agricultural trials in the virtual landscape before deploying them in the real world.
By doing so, it aims to reduce the reliance on lengthy and expensive field programs, with livestock being just one example of a sector which is expected to reap the benefits.
“The Digital Twin creates the foundation for a new virtual R&D capability – scenario modelling and hypothesis testing inside a replica of agricultural environments,” Meat & Livestock Australia managing director Mick Crowley says.
“That means we can test livestock management options and research questions faster, refine trials before we invest in large scale field trials, adoption or commercialisation.
“Done well, this approach can save millions of dollars and years of research time compared with traditional methods, while lifting confidence in what we deploy at scale.”
The platform will also complement existing systems, while enabling the government to design and evaluate policy settings to benefit farmers and ensure environmental sustainability, Koronios adds.
“Those validated insights are embedded into the commercial tools and advisory services that farmers already use,” he says.
Koronios explains the National Digital Twin is not intended to compete with commercial agtech platforms but is instead designed to complement current initiatives.
“It is not just another farm app or dashboard – it exists to connect, validate and amplify the value of existing investments and initiatives across RDCs, government, and industry through a holistic approach,” he says.
“By operating upstream of the market as a source of trusted datasets, models and APIs, it strengthens the quality, consistency and credibility of the intelligence delivered at the farm gate.”
The National Digital Twin integrates satellite Earth Observation, Internet of Things, sensor, weather, water and soil data and farm system models into a shared digital environment.
As this data continues to expand, Koronios says the National Digital Twin will evolve alongside it.
“We can expect more information sources to be integrated over time, particularly as Australia’s sovereign Earth Observation capabilities advance and technologies such as IoT networks with intelligent sensors are increasingly deployed across the agricultural and related sectors,” he says.
“This new data will feed into the National Digital Twin, strengthening its modelling capabilities and predictive performance. The Digital Twin will serve as living R&D engine, continuously improving as new data and insights are validated and incorporated.”
With $15 million in foundational funding already secured and a target of more than $50 million to support the first five years of operation, a dedicated Digital Twin program team has already been appointed, with governance structures designed to support credible national delivery.
Rather than acting as a direct to farmer application, Koronios says the Digital Twin will primarily deliver capability through existing industry and agtech platforms, advisors and trusted service networks.
“This is why Elders have come onboard – it will add to their already comprehensive agronomic services, supporting farmers with expertise in broadacre cropping, horticulture and pasture management,” he says.
“They see that it can further enhance the advice they provide to their clients to optimise crop yields, soil health and pest management.”
Elders CEO, managing director and ASII board member Mark Allison says the organisation’s strength has always been its people and their relationships with farmers.
“The National Digital Twin builds on that by giving agronomists, advisors and agtech providers access to trusted, nationally consistent intelligence and a powerful environment to test and refine ideas before they reach the paddock,” Allison says.
“It aims to strengthen the advice that can be provided, while keeping relationships and judgement firmly with the advisor.”
Initial stages
The initiative is set to be delivered in phases, with early 2026 seeing the formalisation of the project steering committee and program structures, while initial workstreams also commence.
From there, Koronios says the priority lies in designing, building, and testing the core platform, plus validating initial use cases with partners. Once it is ready, the platform will transition from pilot deployments to operational services, adding national layers over time.
“The National Digital Twin for Australian Agriculture is a long-term initiative to establish a sustained 50-plus year national digital infrastructure, akin to a shared backbone that will support agricultural productivity, resilience and policy coordination for years to come,” Koronios says.
“It is designed as an enduring national infrastructure that will evolve continuously as new data sources and modelling techniques become available and new partners join.”
