The companies backing the technology say they can help farmers isolate disease carriers, reduce the cost of feed, increase the fertility of sows and reduce unnatural deaths. JD.com’s system uses robots to feed pigs the correct amount of food depending on the animals’ stage of growth. SmartAHC, a company that uses A.I. to monitors pigs’ vital statistics that offers commercially available services, hooks up sows with wearable monitors that can predict the pigs’ ovulation time. They pitch their technologies as an alternative to the tagging of pigs’ ears, a practice that many farmers find cruel. The tags — which are far cheaper — can be manipulated by humans or fall off if pigs get into fights, they point out. JD.com’s facial technology can detect if a pig is sick and try to find out why, said a spokeswoman, Lu Yishan. Its system would then notify the breeder, who can then prescribe treatment. The company said that it has put the system into use at a farm in China’s northern Hebei Province that it created with China Agricultural University in Beijing, and that it is for sale to willing farmers. Alibaba’s system monitors hog activity and allows farmers to track the swine in real time, the company said in a statement. It would then prescribe an exercise plan to improve their health. Its marketing video shows pigs running in the woods and playing with a ball. Alibaba said Tequ Group, a large pig farming company based in the southwestern province of Sichuan, uses the technology. Tequ didn’t respond to a request for comment. Pig facial recognition works the same way as human facial recognition, the companies say. Scanners and software take in the bristles, the snout, the eyes and ears. The features are mapped. Pigs don’t all look alike when you know what to look for, they said. “It’s just like how a human face is different from others,” said Mr. He, of Yingzi. The pigs don’t always cooperate. Yingzi, which introduced its products commercially last year, uses video to capture them in motion.
Chinese companies are increasingly using technology to detect swine flu . JD.com has developed facial recognition technology that identifies a sick pig , as well as robots that track pigs according to their growth . Meanwhile , Alibaba 's technology enables farmers to monitor pigs in real - time and prescribe exercise to enhance their productivity . SmartAHC uses an AI - based system to monitor a pig 's vital organs and wearable clothing to pinpoint ovulation .