Starting as an engineer, Pi Shengdong, chairman of Changsha-based Zhongcai Group, has ventured into the chili pepper industry. In just two years, he has expanded the chili pepper plantation area to 3,300 acres.

Pi has employed the thinking of an engineer in reshaping the agricultural industry chain. This is how he is different from other chili farmers. He has grown chili in a way he used to manage a project. He has accelerated the development and adoption of harvesting robots and intelligent agriculture digital systems, largely empowering the chili pepper industry in Hunan.