Agtech - So What?

• Solving for Adoption and Channel in AgTech… So what? with Shane Thomas

  There are a few topics in agtech (and in the tech startup world more broadly) that are truly perennial– problems that must be solved again and again in new and innovative ways as markets, customers, and businesses evolve. Adoption is one of those challenges, and go-to-market strategies are another. We’ve been thinking about the challenge of adoption a lot recently, and also what changes in the marketplace will mean for the retail channel and product distribution for agtech in particular. Today, Sarah sits down with Tenacious Ventures’ Matthew Pryor and Shane Thomas, author of Upstream Ag Insights, to do a deep dive on these topics. For more information and resources, visit our website. The information in this post is not investment advice or a recommendation to invest. It is general information only and does not take into account your investment objectives, financial situation or needs. Before making an investment decision you should read the information memorandum and seek financial advice from a professional financial adviser. Whilst we believe Information is correct, no warranty of accuracy, reliability or completeness.

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• From Demo Farms to Adoption with Wine Australia

  When your organization is tasked with the job of getting growers to adopt new technology, there are a few tried, and frankly, not-so-true options to choose from. The world is lightly littered with various flavors of demonstration farms– properties where technologies can be piloted, field days can be hosted, and farmers can be converted from tech skeptics to believers. But in our experience, the problem with demo farms is just that they don’t usually do that much to actually drive adoption. The innovation team at Wine Australia, however, have managed to buck the trend. Their approach to demo farms, and agtech adoption more broadly, is unusual in many ways, and the features that set them apart have led to dramatically improved experiences for farmers and tech companies, ultimately leading to better adoption rates and outcomes for their industry. To learn more about their work, and their lessons along the way, we’re sitting down with Paul Smith, General Manager of Research and Innovation, and Dave Gerner, Regional Innovation Program Manager, at Wine Australia to discuss the custom program they built for their industry, which has led to meaningful success in increasing agtech adoption among Australian wine grape growers. For more information and resources, visit our website. The information in this post is not investment advice or a recommendation to invest. It is general information only and does not take into account your investment objectives, financial situation or needs. Before making an investment decision you should seek financial advice from a professional financial adviser. Whilst we believe the information is correct, we provide no warranty of accuracy, reliability or completeness.

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• Killing Weeds Without Poison with Liam Hescock at Azaneo

  Controlling weeds on farms is a sticky, two part challenge. First, you’ve got to identify the weeds, as distinct from the plants you want to grow. Then, you’ve got to destroy the undesirables and keep the rest. For today’s farmers, these two tasks can seem straightforward, but to do them at the scale required in modern agriculture– not so much. Identifying weeds, especially with computer vision, is a topic we discussed on the podcast last year, and now we’re circling back to talk about the available solutions on the destruction side. Herbicides have been the unchallenged behemoth in this space for decades, but as issues with efficacy and environmental impact mount, farmers are increasingly looking to other options. In the last few years we’ve seen many novel solutions– from mechanical tools to microwaves to flamethrowers. This week, we’re sitting down with Liam Hescock, Founder and CEO of Azaneo, one of our portfolio companies, to talk about their solution– which harnesses the power of electricity. For more information and resources, visit our website. The information in this post is not investment advice or a recommendation to invest. It is general information only and does not take into account your investment objectives, financial situation or needs. Before making an investment decision you should seek financial advice from a professional financial adviser. Whilst we believe the information is correct, we provide no warranty of accuracy, reliability or completeness.

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• 2025 in AgTech… So what? with Shane Thomas

  As the new year gets underway, we’ve been thinking about the likely ups and downs ahead for the agtech world. We’ve been searching for insights in the recent announcement that FMC’s corporate venture capital division is shutting its doors, and thinking about what a trend in CVC pullbacks might mean for the lay of the land in agtech. We’ve also been taking time to think about the agtech companies that currently stand out in today’s tough market conditions, and what it is that sets them apart from the pack. Today, Sarah sits down with Tenacious Ventures Managing Partner Matthew Pryor and Shane Thomas, author of Upstream Ag Insights, to discuss the news and expectations for agtech in 2025.For more information and resources, visit our website. The information in this post is not investment advice or a recommendation to invest. It is general information only and does not take into account your investment objectives, financial situation or needs. Before making an investment decision you should read the information memorandum and seek financial advice from a professional financial adviser. Whilst we believe Information is correct, no warranty of accuracy, reliability or completeness.

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• How Business Model Innovation Changed AgTech in 2024

  There’s nothing like the end of another year to have us reflecting on the recent successes in the world of agtech, and the many challenges still left to overcome. One thing that has continued to stand out to us in 2024 is the vital need for more business model innovation. There’s so much amazing technology that already exists, but for one reason or another, it is not getting adopted or utilized; it’s not delivering on the promised impact or commercial potential. Over the last twelve months we’ve talked to countless entrepreneurs and innovators who are finding novel and fascinating ways to overcome business model barriers, even when they aren’t using those words to describe their efforts. So this week, Sarah is sitting down with Tenacious Ventures Managing Partner Matthew Pryor to connect the dots on business model innovation that we’ve discussed in different podcast episodes all year long. For more information and resources, visit our website. The information in this post is not investment advice or a recommendation to invest. It is general information only and does not take into account your investment objectives, financial situation or needs. Before making an investment decision you should read the information memorandum and seek financial advice from a professional financial adviser. Whilst we believe Information is correct, no warranty of accuracy, reliability or completeness.

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