Heritable Agriculture (US) – AI + breeding to make plants “programmable”
What they do: A Google X spin‑out using AI, multi‑omics and predictive breeding to identify causal genes, design edits, and forecast how crops perform under real farm conditions – aiming for faster, cheaper improvement in yield, resilience and nutrition.
Why talked about in 2025: Launched as an independent company with backing from FTW Ventures, Mythos Ventures and SVG Ventures; positioned as a next‑gen engine for seed companies and growers under pressure to deliver climate‑smart traits at pace.
Read more here: AI-powered insights set to identify best vegetable varieties for growers worldwide / Google spinout Heritable Agriculture brings AI to crop breeding
BinSentry (Canada/US/Brazil) — AI sensors that fix the feed logistics blind spot
What they do: Solar, self‑cleaning sensors and software that track on‑farm feed levels with ~99% accuracy to prevent outages, cut truck rolls and improve forecasts for mills and integrators.
Why talked about in 2025: Closed a $50m Series C (Lead Edge Capital), added a Brazil distribution deal with Cargill, and secured a $25m facility from CIBC Innovation Banking to scale.
Read more: Feed monitoring company BinSentry raises $50 million Series C round to fuel expansion
Terrana Biosciences (US) — RNA “software” for plants
What they do: Flagship Pioneering’s new platform uses native‑like RNAs delivered into plants to prevent (prime immunity), protect (counter active infections) and improve (tolerance, yield) without changing the plant’s genome –applied as sprays or seed treatments.
Why talked about in 2025: Debuted with $50m from Flagship; pitched as a fast, adaptive way to tackle pests, disease and climate shocks across tomatoes, corn, soy and more.
Jord BioScience (US) – Making biologicals perform, consistently
What they do: A “microbial playbook” that boosts the reliability of existing bio‑inputs via a 6,500‑isolate bank and analytics to strengthen pathogen suppression, nutrient release and yield.
Why talked about in 2025: New field data show soybean yield gains up to 3.1 bu/acre across 16 Midwest sites in very different seasons; closed a Series B and earned World Food Prize Foundation recognition for its founder.
Read more here: Jord BioScience gets $7M to develop microbial solutions for ag
Nile.ag (South Africa) – The produce + inputs + finance super‑marketplace
What they do: A digital marketplace where farmers sell fresh produce, buy inputs direct from manufacturers, and access finance – improving price transparency, speed of payment and logistics.
Why talked about in 2025: Raised ~$11.3m (Cathay AfricInvest, FMO) to expand across Southern Africa and deepen inputs/finance – part of a broader surge in ag‑marketplaces across developing markets.
Read more: Nile.ag on why Africa’s farmers want to trade digitally
Ecorobotix (Switzerland) – Ultra‑precision spraying
What they do: AI + computer vision sprayers (ARA) that treat individual plants with a 6×6 cm footprint, cutting crop‑protection use by up to 95% while maintaining efficacy.
Why talked about in 2025: Banked $150m (Series C+D) to globalize and accelerate algorithms – one of the year’s largest ag‑robotics raises.
Read more: Ecorobotix: ‘We’re on track to hit €500m in annual sales in five years’
Shinkei Systems (US) – Robots bringing ike‑jime quality to seafood
What they do: The Poseidon robot uses AI and robotics to automate ike‑jime, an instant, humane harvest method that extends shelf life and raises quality; Shinkei also markets fish via its Seremoni brand.
Why talked about in 2025: TIME Best Inventions honouree; $22m Series A and a new 15,000‑sq‑ft HQ to scale manufacturing – part of a broader push to modernize US seafood supply.
Read more: Seafood automation start-up Shinkei Systems hooks $22m in Series A funding
Grão Direto (Brazil) — Latin America’s digital grain rail
What they do: The region’s largest digital grain marketplace for spot, forward and barter deals, with pricing intelligence, automation and embedded finance.
Why talked about in 2025: Closed a R$90m (~$15.5m) Series B led by Kaszek (with CME Ventures, SLC Ventures) to scale AI pricing tools, barter and fintech; claims 8m tonnes traded last year.
Read more: Brazil’s Grão Direto raises $15M to accelerate digitalisation of global grain trading
TerraBlaster (US) – Mars‑grade lasers for real‑time soil nutrients
What they do: A planter‑mounted LIBS sensor (NASA lineage) maps plant‑available nutrients in real time so farmers can apply the right fertiliser in the same pass – cutting waste and cost.
Why talked about in 2025: Hired Blue River/Deere veteran Jorge Heraud as CEO; raised ~$4m pre‑seed from top climate/ag funds; widely touted as a category‑defining shot at fertilizer efficiency.
Read more: Soil health analytics start-up TerraBlaster closes oversubscribed $4m pre-seed round
Follow all start-up news here
CroBio (UK/US) – Living soil amendment for drought resilience
What they do: Engineered microbes produce bacterial cellulose “sponges” around roots to lock in water and nutrients, improving retention and enabling carbon drawdown.
Why talked about in 2025: Secured €805k Defra/Innovate UK grant with University of York and BDC; greenhouse trials report ~200% water‑retention gains in sandy soils.
Nofence (Norway/US/EU) – Virtual fencing at scale
What they do: Solar GPS collars and an app create audio‑guided “virtual fences” for cattle, sheep and goats, enabling rotational grazing without posts and wire.
Why talked about in 2025: Raised >$35m Series B (Europe’s largest agtech round this year) to expand in the US/EU; momentum boosted by new USDA/NRCS cost‑share pathways for virtual fencing.
Read more: Nofence celebrates largest funding round of the year
Pivot Bio (US) – Gene‑edited microbes as a third nitrogen source
What they do: Root‑colonising microbes deliver in‑season nitrogen, letting growers replace 20-40 lb/ac of synthetic N today, with ambitions to reach 40-50% substitution over time.
Why talked about in 2025: New peer‑reviewed data from University of Illinois validate atmospheric N uptake in corn; expanded product formats (incl. planter‑box dry powders) and retail channels.
Read more: Pivot Bio reports biologicals usage uptick in 2024 impact report
Oishii (US) – Premium vertical‑farmed berries beating the CEA slump
What they do: Indoor, pesticide‑free strawberries (and tomatoes) using robotics, AI‑guided pollination and energy‑efficient farms to deliver consistent, high‑end fruit.
Why talked about in 2025: Closed $150m Series B across 2024 (NTT et al.) and 2025 add‑ons; one of few CEA players scaling with discipline, quality and brand pull amid sector shakeouts.
Read more: ‘We were lean, mean and scrappy’ – what do successful vertical farms look like today?
Tractor Junction (India) – Rural mechanisation + fintech in one stack
What they do: A hybrid online/offline marketplace for new/used tractors and rural vehicles with a fast‑growing finance arm (FINJ) that underwrites and disburses loans via 25 partners.
Why talked about in 2025: Raised $22–22.6m Series A (Astanor, Info Edge, Omnivore) to scale stores and credit; reports 13× revenue growth in three years and ₹1,500 cr in loans since 2024.
Read more: Tractor Junction: The start-up bringing transparency to India’s $50bn rural machinery market
Halter (New Zealand/US) – Virtual fencing + the ranch OS
What they do: Solar smart collars, ranch towers and an app to fence, move and monitor herds; used for adaptive grazing, labour savings and animal health insights.
Why talked about in 2025: $165m Series D at a $1.65bn valuation and a new partnership with the US Bureau of Land Management to bring virtual fencing onto public lands; TIME Best Inventions special mention.
Read more: From cow herder to unicorn… What’s behind Halter’s hefty market value?
Cropin (India/global) – Ground‑to‑cloud farm data and risk analytics
What they do: Satellites + AI for field mapping, agronomy, traceability and risk scoring (SmartFarm/SmartRisk), used by agribusinesses, governments and lenders.
Why talked about in 2025: As climate and policy regimes shift, enterprise buyers need robust MRV and risk tools; Cropin remains one of the most widely deployed platforms in emerging markets.
Read more: Cropin teams up with Walmart to strengthen agri-food retail supply
BugBug (UK) – Acoustic AI that “listens” for hidden pests
What they do: The Insect Eavesdropper™ uses contact mics + AI to detect sub‑audible feeding/vibration signatures (e.g., CSFB larvae in OSR, rootworms in corn) before damage is visible.
Why talked about in 2025: Fresh pilots and early wins in high‑value crops, plus emerging recognition in MENA (e.g., Saudi National Palm Center award), keep it on radar in the fast‑growing bio/precision IPM space.
Read more: BugBug advances commercial development, targets grapes and sugarcane
Avalo (US) – Interpretable‑AI breeding for low‑input crops
What they do: A “Rapid Evolution™” platform and Whole‑Genome AI to accelerate trait discovery and breeding—initially cotton and sugarcane—with an emphasis on non‑GMO routes.
Why talked about in 2025: $11m Series A and a partnership with Coca‑Cola Europacific Partners on climate‑smart sugarcane; positioning cotton lines for brand‑desired fiber traits and reduced inputs.
Read more: Coca-Cola and Avalo’s project to decarbonise sugar is more complicated than it looks
Puna Bio (Argentina/US/Brazil/Africa) – Extremophile microbes for stressed soils
What they do: Seed‑applied biologicals derived from ancient extremophiles to improve nutrient uptake, nitrogen fixation and yield in harsh or degraded conditions.
Why talked about in 2025: Closed Series A (led by Corteva Catalyst) and then added the Gates Foundation, its first Argentine start‑up investment, to expand into Sub‑Saharan Africa.
Read more: Argentinian biologicals start-up Puna Bio prepares for expansion with Series A round
