Arli is a collaborative digital platform that seamlessly connects farmers, extension agents, and scientists, providing personalized views, real-time communication, and data-driven insights and decision-making to enhance crop yields, research, and sustainability.
THE TEAM
Chloe Au Yeung
Angelia Legaspi
Ellie Fowler
Santos Torres
Zoe Bair
MY ROLES
UI Design Lead
Web Designer
UX Researcher
TOOLS
Figma, Adobe Suite, Rhino 3D, Keyshot
TIMELINE
Jan - June 2025 (20 Weeks)
So, what’s this about?
Remember that one grocery trip you had to get a missing ingredient, only to find it's out of stock?
Happens to all of us. And it's frustrating.
Due to climate change, our crops are impacted and don't reach our shelves as easy anymore.
Agriculture in the face of climate change is a much deeper challenge.
Problem Statement
Identifying the issue
There is a disconnect in information between farmers, extension agents, and scientists that hinders their ability to address climate change in a timely manner.
Mission
Our Why
Bridging non-corporation affiliated farmers, extension agents, and scientists together with seamless, data-driven collaboration.
With transparency at its core, this exchange enhances farming techniques, boosting crop resilience against climate change.
1. Sowing The Groundwork - Secondary Research
Statistics
By the numbers
61%
of US growers are currently using or planning to adopt agricultural technology
in the next 2 years.
52%
cite high costs as the
reason preventing them from adopting technology.
40%
cite unclear return
on investment.
Interviews
What do the experts say?
We interviewed farmers, agricultural scientists and extension agents to explore their values, practices, challenges, relationships with each other, and perspectives on agricultural technology.
8
Farmers
+
4
Scientists
+
2
Extension Agents
=
352
Data Points
Our key takeaways
We learned that…
Weather uncertainty, shifting policies, and differing goals between farmers and scientists create strain around change.
Farmers usually trust extension agents to help smooth out communication differences between them, scientists, and institutions.
The lack of standardization in processes frustrates farmers and creates distrust in data intended to help them.
There’s a strong desire for user-friendly tools that combine data, weather, and farm records in one place.
The issue is not the need for new agricultural technologies, but ways to
connect farmers, extension agents, and scientists.
2. Rooting Insights - Analysis
Stakeholders
Leaders in the field
We discovered several key players involved in agriculture.
Target Audience
People at the center
(1)
Farmers
The backbone of our food systems.
Established, non-corporation affiliated, makes a living from farming.
(2)
Extension Agents
The unseen heroes of agriculture.
Education and outreach to farmers, employees of land-grant universities.
(3)
Scientists
Growing solutions for the world.
Conducts research on agriculture, employees of land-grant universities.
How Might We Statements
Asking the key questions
How might we...
build better trust and increase data sharing among farmers, extension agents, and agricultural scientists to improve crop resiliency?
How might we...
create an accessible and modular product that can be scaled to fit a variety of crops, regions, and land size?
How might we...
provide a personalized experience for farmers, extension agents, and agricultural scientists that is profitable for all parties?
User Needs
Things that matter the most
Farmers need:
Clear communication on whether it’s attainable or not
Rapid communication on timely issues
Products that work in a variety of scenarios
Scientists need:
Awareness of the actual challenges they face
Specific data and awareness of local issues
More support on state and federal levels
Extension Agents need:
Access to farm’s historical data
Centralized system for storing data
Improve trust and connection with farmers
Opportunity Areas
Where change can happen
After understanding the needs of our users, we found 5 opportunity spaces where we can make a difference.
Privacy Concerns
Low Tech
Understanding Needs
Building Trust
Urgency & Timeliness
Product Ecosystem
How it all connects
3. Branching Out - Ideation
Early Concepts
Where the ideas started
As lead UI designer, I drafted lo-fi wireframes of our App and Desktop Platform to better visualize our concepts.
Arli App
Allows farmers to always have access to and manage their data.
Shows overview of farm info
Connects to physical products
Collects and stores historical and current data
Easily understandable data visualization
Personalized actionable steps
AI business analytics and plans
Direct communication w/ extension agent
Arli Desktop Platform
Farmer
Allows farmers to efficiently manage their farm through direct communication with extension agents.
Overview of farm info
Personalized actionable steps
AI business analytics and plans
Communication with extension agent
Extension Agent
A comprehensive tool for extension agents to gather data from farmers and scientists, create insights from the data, and relay recommendation to farmers.
AI data filtering and insights
Easily understandable data visualization
Communication tools to connect farmers and scientists
Immediate recommendations / actionable steps to farmers
Scientist
A comprehensive tool for scientists to gather and analyze farmer’s data to directly share with extension agents.
AI data filtering and insights
Request data from extension agent
Communication with extension agent
Upload research for extension agents to review
Arli Sensor & Tractor Attachment
Collects and relays data to farmers through product ecosystem.
Tractor Attachment
Collects environmental data
In-field updates for immediate action
Visualization of crops and tractor path
Sensor
Easy maintenance
Weather-proof and scalable
Collects environmental and crop data
Once we had our initial idea and wireframes, it's time to see if our concept resonated with our users.
4. Cultivate - Concept Validation
Pilot Testing
Putting it to the test
Our objective is to ensure functions and structure are clear, as well as identify pain points in navigation, and visualization.
Testers
6 Students
Methodology
Moderated Usability Testing
Scenario-Based Testing
Task Success Metrics
Tools
UI Prototype
Measuring Insights
Usability Patterns
Completion Metrics
Qualitative Feedback
Task Performance
Measuring task success
Farmer Desktop
Farmer App
Extension Agent Desktop
Scientist Desktop
Success
Struggle
Failure
Reflection
Learning from mistakes
The pilot test revealed key functional issues, so we went back to the drawing board, revised the site map, and made several new iterations to improve usability.
Mid-fi Wireframes
Iterate and improve
I modified the wireframes using our new sitemap and referencing user feedback, making sure all the testing insights have been incorporated, while keeping the interface user-friendly and clean.
5. Field Testing - Usability Testing
Field Testing
Testing with real users
Additional to our pilot testing plan objectives, we want to ensure our product meets user expectations and needs during field testing.
Testers
3 Farmers
3 Extension Agents
3 Scientists
Methodology
Moderated Usability Testing
Scenario-Based Testing
Task Success Metrics
Tools
UI Prototype
Maze
Measuring Insights
Usability Patterns
Completion Metrics
Qualitative Feedback
Click & Interaction Tracking
Affinity Mapping
Task Performance
Measuring task success
Farmers
Success
Struggle
Failure
Farmer App
Farmer Desktop
Extension Agents
Success
Struggle
Failure
Extension Agents App
Extension Agents Desktop
Scientists
Success
Struggle
Failure
Scientists Desktop
System Usability
Users found it easy
Our System Usability Scale (SUS) scores for all 3 platforms have achieved above the Excellent score.
User Quotes
Real words, real impact
A Farmer said:
"I hope to see this rolled out soon as it seems like a very useful application for independent farmers."
A Scientist said:
"Having a tool that could digest a scientific paper and summarize it quickly, then allow the scientist to easily review and send it is amazing."
An Extension Agent said:
"It's amazing, like this is what we need in the agricultural industry because there's platforms that attempt to do things like this but they've failed for a lot of reasons."
Iterations
Refining the product
Getting user input from our real users of farmers, extension agents and scientists allowed me to refine our features and interface, ensuring every detail was precise and intuitive.
Farmer App & Desktop
Extension Agent App & Desktop
Scientist Desktop
6. Bringing To Market - Final Concept
Hi-fi Wireframes
Ready for handoff
Solution
A platform for all, with data rooted in trust
Arli Sensor
Mobile App
Desktop App
An ecosystem that collects and stores data while assisting and connecting farmers, extension agents, and scientists.
7. Grow with Arli
Environment Impact
What it means for our Earth
Strengthening Local Communities
Strengthening the farmer–extension agent bond to build trust, share knowledge, and boost resilience.
Enhancing Food Security
Innovative farming techniques boost crop resilience, helping farmers maintain yields and ensure food security despite climate and resource challenges.
Increased Access To Agricultural Innovation
Low-cost AgTech solutions enable more farms to access digital tools without financial barriers.
Brand Vision
The future with Arli is…
Connected
Farmers, extension agents, and scientists come together with a shared purpose: to grow smarter, stronger, and more resilient. With every tool and insight in one place, Arli turns collaboration into real change, from the ground up.
Personalized
Every farm gets tailored insights and support. No more one-size-fits-all solutions. Arli evolves with your farm, your data, and your climate, always ready for what’s next.
Responsive
Your fields are always sending signals through the soil, the weather, and the plants themselves. Arli helps you tune in, translating those signals into clear, timely insights. So you can listen closely, make confident decisions, and take action when it matters most.
My Reflections
Growing with Arli
Converting insights into functionality
As lead UI Designer, my role was to create 3 different versions of the Arli platform, while maintaining a consistent design system for each target user. Stuck at first, it wasn’t until I spoke with our users and fully understood their needs and pain points that allowed me to visualize and iterate on an intuitive experience that satisfied all users expectations.
Growing with Arli
Creating Arli allowed me to learn more about myself as a designer, and as a teammate. It gave me an opportunity to improve on my shortcomings and reflect on my mistakes, as well as strengthen my communication skills with my team. As Arli grew, I also grew with it.
That’s a wrap — thanks for stopping by!
Hope you enjoyed the journey.
Check out my other projects •ᴗ•
