Around the world, bees are dying due to climate change, viruses and habitat loss. Bees are important insects, not only for their sweet honey, but for their pollination prowess. They are responsible for the pollination of the majority of the plants that humans and animals consume. According to the World Food Programme, three-quarters of the plants that we eat are pollinated by bees.
The idea came to Khaled Bouchoucha, Cheif General Manager of IRIS Technologies in 2011 when his father, a beekeeper, had lost a number of his beehives in a heatwave. While discussing the issue Bouchoucha thought about incorporating tech to monitor the beehives.
He founded IRIS Technologies in 2016 and developed an IoT device called SmartBee. The device’s chief aim is to keep bees, one of Earth’s most significant species for human survival, alive and healthy. SmartBee helps beekeepers monitor the temperature, humidity, and quality of bee humming to protect hives. The app works by sending alerts to the user describing the problem to prevent it from escalating. Thereby saving the lives of bees.
Khaled Bouchoucha explains that problems facing beekeepers include external factors, such as climate change, but also general problems faced by by farmers such as theft and beehive collapse.
The startup aims to help beekeepers manage their hives. The beehives are equipped with monitors and transmitters. According to Bouchoucha, “The device helps farmers improve cost-effectiveness and efficiency by sensing indications of problems that may occur in the beehive,” saving millions of bees, an integral part of human life.
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