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Silicon, a micronutrient, positively influences plant nutrient availability and drought resistance. Current supply chains mostly rely on traditional, non-circular economy sources, causing downsides in terms of ecological sustainability. K+S, a global leader in plant nutrition solutions, has joined forces with VCG.AI from RootCamp batch #6, to use the AI-driven value chain generator platform from VCG to find new, sustainable sources of silicon for plant nutrition. These silicon sources could be used as a value-adding additive to standard K+S fertilisers.
Corporate Challenge
K+S aims to differentiate its product, Korn-KALI, by incorporating silicon to boost its market potential. The company's long-term strategy focuses on substituting fossil, mineral fertiliser components with organic and circular alternatives. However, it remains a challenge to find circular and preferential organic silicon streams matching the requirements of K+S.
Solution: AI-driven discovery of circular silicon sources
VCG.AI is using its advanced value chain generator platform to help K+S identify and discover high-quality, plant-available silicon sources from residual material streams. By applying tailored AI models to analyze and prioritize vast datasets, the initiative seeks to uncover sources of plant-available silicon, particularly from residual and secondary material streams. The goal is to enable K+S to optimize sustainability and innovation using AI-powered analytics to accelerate research and development in silicon fertilizer solutions.
The pilot project, initiated and managed by Rootcamp, runs from May 1, 2025 to Jul 31, 2025 with a budget of €10,000. Central to the project is the development of a tailored AI model for alternative silicon source discovery. Building on this foundation, VCG.AI delivers a discovery and prioritization report that evaluates key performance indicators such as price, volume, feedstock types, technology readiness levels (TRLs), and geographic distribution of the silicon sources.
To ensure K+S can actively engage with the platform and apply the results internally, the project also includes a limited trial run of K+S colleagues on the VCG.AI software. This will be supported by an onboarding workshop, enabling different departments of K+S to use and understand the added value of VCG.AI’s software. That builds a solid foundation for a potential long-term collaboration between these players, initiated & managed by RootCamp.
RootCamp: Enabler of corporate-startup-collaboration
RootCamp specializes in finding the right solutions from the startup world for precise corporate challenges, connecting startups and scale-ups with established corporates through a venture clienting approach. By acting as a strategic enabler, RootCamp facilitates real-world pilot projects that allow corporates to accelerate innovation while providing startups with direct access to complex industry challenges and market opportunities. Find out more about our venture clienting services and implemented pilot projects.
