“Extension AI” work is supported by funding from a cooperative agreement with USDA-NIFA and in partnership with the University of New Hampshire, New Technologies for Ag Extension, grant no. 2023-41595-41325 . This work includes the ExtensionBot tool that the foundation is working on in the Artificial Intelligence space. The Large Language and Embedding models used by ExtensionBot can also be utilized in other AI-based tools and services that we hope to develop and deploy in the coming months and years.

Try it out!

Experiment with the full page version of ExtensionBot here: https://extension.org/chat/

…or the widget version here: https://extension.org/extensionbot-v2/

What is ExtensionBot?

ExtensionBot is a LLM Agnostic chatbot that is built and deployed by the Extension Foundation. We are working closely with Eduworks Corporation on the development and deployment of the technology. ExtensionBot is backed by an LLM (Large Language Model) that is trained exclusively on data provided by Cooperative Extension institutions and Ask Extension. Because ExtensionBot provides citations to Extension resources along with its responses, these responses can be verified in real-time. Our platform is built so that LLMs can quickly be retrained and replaced depending on performance and application.

Our larger goal is to build an LLM that is trained on Extension Resources from across the Cooperative Extension service. Each new institution or contributing member strengthens the LLM. In addition to asking institutions to create data dumps, we are asking they create a “data pipeline” for their data. This is an API endpoint that is updated on a regular basis so our LLM is consistently being updated.

Listen to a great use case of how Oklahoma State is using ExtensionBot.

Contributing Institutions

Below is a list of current contributing institutions along with the number of resources that have been provided.

  • Oklahoma State University (1,540)
  • Oregon State University (5,203)
  • University of Georgia (874)
  • University of Florida Publications (6,402)
  • University of Florida Blogs(10,354)
  • University of Kentucky (324)
  • University of Tennessee(2,602)
  • LSU (1917)
  • Penn St. (4,740) In development
  • University of California – Integrated Pest Management (1,675)
  • Ask Extension Knowledgebase (313,443)

Crawled Sites

  • University of Maryland (331)
  • Colorado State University (602)
  • Mississippi State University (4,215)
  • Clemson University (997)
  • Alabama A&M + Auburn (2,772)
  • Utah State University (1,197)
  • University of Arkansas (1,175)
  • North Carolina State University (1,900)
  • Virginia Tech (300)
  • Tennessee State University (180)
  • University of Arizona (2028)
  • Wisconsin (1257)

Extension Foundation AI Advisory Board

This board will consist of members of the Extension Foundation and participating institutions. This board will help guild policy, feature development and implementation of AI tools such as ExtenstionBot. Additionally, this group can help guide the future of AI within the broader Cooperative Extension Service.

ExtensionBot Data Specification

If you would like to have your own instance of ExtensionBot that is custom trained on your institution’s data here is the spec you want to follow. Be sure to use the validator to check your content before sharing it with us. Contact Mark Locklear for more information. Also, you can view our information session HERE.

ExtensionBot Configuration

More info HERE

Extension Foundation Logo White

Our mission is to help Cooperative Extension generate a more visible, measurable, local impact.

We achieve this through our nationally funded programs made possible by member dollars and cooperative agreements with federal agencies, and through partnering on state, regional, and national initiatives with Cooperative Extension and the Extension Committee on Organization and Policy (ECOP). We serve all Land Grant Universities, regardless of membership status.

Terms of Use

Cooperative Extension logo white

The Extension Foundation is a nonprofit established by Extension Directors and Administrators nationwide. Extension Foundation is embedded in the U.S. Cooperative Extension System and serves on Extension Committee on Organization and Policy (ECOP).

USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture

This website is supported in part by New Technologies for Ag Extension (funding opportunity no. USDA-NIFA-OP-010186), grant no. 2023-41595-41325 from the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of the U.S. Department of Agriculture or the Extension Foundation.

Sign up for our Newsletter

Stay up to date with the Extension Foundation.

Subscribe