The third annual Women in Ag Tech meeting at Tech Hub LIVE opened to a buzzing atmosphere as Susan Olson, founder of Action Intel, took the stage for her keynote address. Susan shared her personal story, hoping it would offer guidance and ease the journeys of other women in the audience.
A Foundation in Adventure and Rigor
Susan’s talk began with her lifelong love for adventure, whether big or small, and a natural curiosity for new experiences. Her early fascination with programming and science was fostered by encouraging grade school teachers who propelled her into a programming competition and later, science projects. It was in high school that she met Susan Miller, a pivotal mentor who taught her the importance of statistical rigor in research, leading her to success at the international science fair. Susan emphasized the lasting legacy of early mentorship, highlighting how guiding individuals toward their strengths at a young age can have a profound impact.
Moving to her post-secondary years, Susan pursued mechanical engineering at the University of Pennsylvania. Despite an early morning thermodynamics class that clashed with her college lifestyle, her professor, Doug Stant, recognized her research drive. Together, they collaborated on a project for Sandia National Labs, developing a novel flaring device. Doug’s most significant influence, however, was in urging Susan to consider graduate school, a concept entirely new to her as the first in her immediate family to attend college.
Grit, Fidelity, and Aerospace Research
Susan’s journey continued at the University of Notre Dame, where she embarked on graduate studies in the Huston Center for Aerospace Research. She vividly recalled the demanding environment, including working in a research center without air conditioning, which required a “special kind of grit.” Her advisor, Clint Thomas, instilled in her the critical principle of fidelity in data, stressing the importance of relentlessly questioning results and repeating experiments to avoid confirmation bias. Susan credits Dr. Thomas for teaching her a rigorous approach to research, a quality she now embodies herself. Even years after her studies, a simple high-five from Dr. Thomas signifies the enduring impact of their mentorship.
Her research at Notre Dame delved into the high-lift systems of commercial airplanes, the components of wings that extend during takeoff and landing to generate more lift at slower speeds. She also worked on hydrodynamics for the Navy, studying how flow over submarine control surfaces creates detectable noise. Throughout these experiences, mentors like Dr. Ross at NASA provided crucial support, making her feel she belonged in high-level research environments, even if he still doesn’t quite grasp her current work in agriculture technology.
From Sound Waves to Supply Chains: The Genesis of Action Intel
Susan’s technical expertise extended to working with Dr. Tom Mueller on anechoic chambers for sound measurement and Dr. Blake, a leading figure in science. Dr. Mueller recognized her talent and gave her the autonomy to “run with it,” a role Susan believes is ideal for a mentor: pointing someone in a direction and letting their momentum carry them.
She delved into the complexities of beamforming arrays, a technology using spirals of microphones to pinpoint sound sources in space and time. This experience, while technically challenging, further honed her ability to translate complex data into understandable patterns. A crucial takeaway from this period was from Todd, who articulated the philosophy: “People work best when the process is with talent and passion.”
After gaining experience in commercial environments, including work on the F-135 Joint Strike Fighter aircraft at Honeywell, Susan joined a new venture with two “Navy gods” in Louisville, Kentucky. Here, she measured global energy flows using sensors and sold these signals to commodity traders, creating an independent picture of supply and demand. This experience, focused on data storage and people-centric leadership, became a turning point.
Recognizing her diverse background, her colleagues tasked her with a new challenge: developing an agriculture business from scratch, despite their own lack of experience in the sector. Susan embraced the challenge, attending conferences and applying technologies from other industries to agriculture. This included using power monitors to measure energy flow into ethanol plants and infrared cameras to detect heat signatures, allowing them to gauge production. She even developed a technique to measure natural gas liquids in storage by flying an airplane over brine ponds, leveraging changes in brine levels.
Susan’s work extended to soybean processing plants, using infrared cameras to determine their operational status and selling this data to interested parties. She also used teleprompters and cameras to monitor ethanol and other liquid storage fields on inland waterways. These endeavors highlighted a significant lack of transparency in the logistics of moving grain and fertilizer.
This realization led her to found Action Intel, a business dedicated to creating transparent and accessible data for everyone to better understand agricultural logistics and supply chains. She acknowledged the tough but invaluable mentorship of Greg Langdon, her small group leader from the LaunchIt startup program, who taught her to confront difficult truths and provided unwavering guidance.
Today, Action Intel uses AI-assisted data and computer vision, specifically with cameras placed along rivers, to provide real-time images and identify details like barge type, number, and cargo. This involves machine learning, artificial intelligence, statistics, and data engineering to transform large, complex datasets into easily digestible pictures for better decision-making.
Susan Olson concluded by expressing her appreciation for the opportunity to share her story, emphasizing how she has channeled her drive, talent, and passion to build Action Intel and contribute to the evolving landscape of Ag Tech.
