The Fermentation Loop · 01 — Monitoring shows you the problem
#newsletter#the-fermentation-loop
David Olsson
Welcome to the first issue. The Fermentation Loop is a short monthly note on building autonomous control on real fermentation — category thinking, what we're learning in the consortium, and a bit of the science. No spam, no metrics we can't stand behind. Let's go.
One idea: monitoring vs. closed-loop control
Most fermentation tools you can buy today monitor — they show you the dashboard and benchmark this batch against the last. Useful, and they stop right where it gets interesting. Closed-loop control is a different square: it runs a live model of the ferment, sees a batch leaving its trajectory before it's a problem, and recommends the correction. Monitoring ends at the chart. Control acts on it.
That distinction is the whole thesis behind what we're building — and we think it's a category waiting to be named for food, beverage, and industrial fermentation.
→ We wrote it up in full: Monitoring shows you the problem. Closing the loop solves it.
What we're up to
We're building FermentDT — a supervisory AI layer (a digital twin) that sits on top of the PLC/SCADA you already run — through Ai26.10, a twelve-month consortium between Atomic 47 Labs and Crush Dynamics, backed by Protein Industries Canada. The work is happening on a real industrial fermentation in Summerland, BC — not a lab bench. Pre-commercial, deliberately, while we get it right with operators.
A bit of science
The fermentation science and algorithms behind the soft sensors and the digital twin are documented in the open — methods, not marketing. Worth a read if you like the details under the hood. (Link on our Resources page.)
Three ways in
- See it run — the live demo lab hosts the digital-twin dashboard and our working prototypes.
- Shape it — the Design-Partner Programme is for operators who want to influence what we build and earn first access. A benchmarking conversation on your process is part of the deal.
- Meet us — monthly Fermentation Office Hours: a 30-minute live walkthrough + open Q&A.
Building it with the people who run the tanks.
— The FermentDT team, Okanagan, BC
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