Microcosmos

Microcosmos is a cutting-edge AI-powered platform designed to democratize soil health diagnostics through the microbiome. It transforms the microscope into a tool for visualizing and understanding the living soil, empowering farmers, land stewards, and communities to regenerate ecosystems with knowledge, confidence, and care.

Why Microcosmos?

Soils are the foundation of life: they support food systems, biodiversity, water cycles, and climate stability. Yet over 90% of the world’s soils could be degraded by 2050, and most land managers still lack affordable, real-time tools to evaluate biological soil health.

Microcosmos aims to reverse current degradation trends. The project builds an accessible system that bridges science, technology, and land stewardship - contributing to a global shift toward knowledge-based regenerative management of the planet’s most essential resource: soil.

What Does it Offer?

Microcosmos makes the invisible visible. It enables users to observe and interpret patterns of microbial life in soil samples, turning them into indicators of broader ecosystem functioning — such as nutrient cycling (e.g., nitrogen availability, phosphorus mineralization), pathogen resistance potential, and climate-regulating processes (e.g., carbon sequestration potential)

Rather than relying solely on expensive lab analyses, Microcosmos offers immediate biological insights, enabling real-time, informed decision-making. It is designed to be modular, scalable, and applicable across diverse contexts — from agricultural fields to specialized laboratories, educational settings, and ecological restoration projects.

A Collaborative Ecosystem

Microcosmos is not just a tool — it’s a movement.

Developed with the support of the Forest Science and Technology Centre of Catalonia (CTFC) and in collaboration with farmers, soil consultants, citizen scientists, and leading research institutions, Microcosmos is grounded in science, built on ethical governance, and designed to serve the global soil regeneration community.

It is also an innovation platform. While we develop the core AI model, we are actively building partnerships with research groups to co-create new analytical modules for additional bioindicators. These collaborations allow scientists to contribute their datasets and insights to a global solution, while also benefiting economically from their integration into a shared platform.

Guided by a high-level scientific advisory board and aligned with international biodiversity strategies, Microcosmos will be tested in long-term agroecological trials, including those from CTFC’s strategic research projects.

If you’re a soil researcher, part of a monitoring network, or interested in co-developing new bioindicator modules, we’d love to hear from you.

👇 Sign up below to stay connected and explore collaboration opportunities.

Microcosmos goes beyond technology: it embodies a shared vision of soil literacy and ecological resilience, uniting communities, scientists, and policymakers. It supports:

Vision & Impact

By fostering a shared language around soil life, Microcosmos connects people to the ecosystems they depend on—turning complexity into clarity, and data into regeneration.

Real, Democratic Food Sovereignty

Regenerative Land Use

Biodiversity Conservation

Climate Adaptation - Carbon Sequestration

Community Empowerment

When Will I Be Able to Access It?

Microcosmos is currently in active development, with a prototype under construction.

The final product will be a cloud-based software platform that installs on a computer and connects in real time to microscopes equipped with simple cameras. This will allow the software to directly analyze what the microscope sees — providing instant assessments and biological indicators of soil health, with no need for laboratories or technical training.

The goal is to release a first version for testing in real-world settings by the end of 2025, beginning with pilot communities and research partners.

👉 Sign up below to receive updates, early access opportunities, and insights as we co-create this collective tool for soil regeneration.

Microcosmos has been featured in:

Living Soils: Biodiversity and Pollution. PATT Session, November 2024
Government of Catalonia – Department of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Food

11th ERIAFF Annual Conference: Living Labs for Climate Change Adaptation and Soil Health: Sharing Regional Experiences.