Welcome back, listeners! In today's episode, we'll dive into the latest strides in AgTech, featuring Syngenta's new open platform for digital agriculture, major funding rounds for bioinsecticides and AI-driven pesticide discovery, and significant expansions in vertical farming and greenhouse automation. Let's get started!

Here’s a Quick Snapshot of What’s Making Headlines:

1. Plant Science: AI-driven gene editing partnerships, $10 million Series A for antibody-based bioinsecticides, $6 million seed round for AI-driven pesticide discovery, nitrogen monitoring across Europe, and patented antifungal corn technology
2. AgTech & Innovation: Syngenta's Cropwise Open Platform launch, DJI Agriculture's new drone models, CLAAS's record-breaking JAGUAR 1000 series forage harvester, and Doktar's automated pest monitoring partnership
3. CEA & Market Dynamics: GoodLeaf Farms raises $52 million, Harvest Singularity invests $66 million in Florida facility, SAIA Agrobotics secures €10 million for greenhouse automation, and Agroz Inc. expands into GCC and Southeast Asia
4. Climate & Sustainability: Gates Foundation's $1.4 billion climate adaptation commitment, strategic partnerships in regenerative agriculture, and innovative funding for plastic-free fertilizers and cultivated leather
5. Events: Myplant & Garden Middle East in Dubai, World Agri-Tech Innovation Summit Dubai, and Indoor Ag-Con in Las Vegas

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Welcome back, listeners! In today's episode, we'll dive into the latest strides in AgTech, featuring Syngenta's new open platform for digital agriculture, major funding rounds for bioinsecticides and AI-driven pesticide discovery, and significant expansions in vertical farming and greenhouse automation. Let's get started!

In today's snapshot, we're examining whether the CEA industry is truly rebounding in 2025 or if the data is telling a different story. We'll explore how funding momentum has returned but remains selective, analyze investor participation patterns, and look at the sharp rise in strategic partnerships across the industry. There's important context to cover, so let's dive in.

A review of our 2025 dataset shows a selective, uneven recovery across the CEA ecosystem. Funding momentum has indeed returned, but it is heavily concentrated in greenhouse infrastructure and enabling technologies such as automation, AI-driven crop optimization, robotics, substrates, and advanced lighting. Companies including SAIA Agrobotics, Source.ag, Voltiris, AISPRID, and Four AG Robotics raised new rounds, yet in many cases these raises were smaller than their previous financings, signaling that investor appetite is improving but remains conservative. Large project investments such as Harvest Singularity's $66 million greenhouse exist, but they are exceptions rather than indicators of broad market acceleration. Despite renewed activity, the database continues to show frequent bankruptcies and restructurings across vertical farming and CEA-linked operators, including exits in North America, Europe, and Asia. Several deals recorded as mergers and acquisitions were distressed transactions involving companies selling assets at heavy discounts.

The pattern suggests that while certain operators with strong economics are moving forward, weaker models are still being filtered out of the market. This points to a reallocation of capital, not a uniform rebound. Investor participation reinforces this selectivity. Farm Credit Canada stands out as one of the most active investors of the year with 3 deals, followed by repeat participation from Cibus Capital. A wide range of single-ticket investors, including Power Sustainable Lios, McCain Foods, S2G Investments, Astanor Ventures, Raiven Capital, AgFunder, Grosvenor Food and AgTech, Ingka Investments, and several regional venture capital firms contributed to activity, but the distribution of deals suggests targeted bets rather than broad enthusiasm. A notable 2025 trend is the sharp rise in product integrations and strategic partnerships across the industry. The dataset shows a high frequency of Product Integration, Memorandum of Understanding, Strategic Partnership, Joint Venture, Project, Education, Manufacturing Partnership, and Distribution Agreement announcements.

These collaborations often pair technology providers with growers, integrate digital tools with climate or irrigation systems, or formalize cross-border cooperation. This signals a shift toward interoperability, ecosystem building, and shared risk, as companies strengthen value propositions not by expanding alone but by embedding themselves into broader systems used by growers and supply-chain partners. Taken together, 2025 reflects a disciplined rebuilding phase: capital is flowing again, partnership activity is surging, and technology integration is accelerating, yet funding sizes remain smaller, and operator failures persist. The "comeback" is real, but it is selective, efficiency-driven, and heavily shaped by collaboration rather than standalone growth.

In closing, we've examined how the AgTech sector is experiencing a selective recovery, with funding concentrated in greenhouse infrastructure and enabling technologies while bankruptcies and restructurings continue across vertical farming operators. From investor selectivity with Farm Credit Canada leading activity to the surge in strategic partnerships and product integrations, it's clear that the industry is undergoing a disciplined rebuilding phase. As capital flows again but funding sizes remain conservative, the future of AgTech favors efficiency-driven growth and collaborative ecosystem building over standalone expansion.

Jumping into the main feature of today's program, agtech. Syngenta has launched the Cropwise Open Platform, providing global third-party developers access to its AI-powered digital ecosystem across more than 70 million hectares in over 30 countries. Moving forward, Netherlands-based Doktar has partnered with Trapview to integrate automated pest monitoring and forecasting into its digital platform. The collaboration offers real-time pest insights to improve farm management efficiency and supports climate-smart agriculture by reducing pesticide use and promoting biodiversity. Additionally, DJI Agriculture has launched the Agras T100, T70P, and T25P drones in Europe, Central Asia, and Africa amid a 90% global rise in agricultural drone use since 2020. The models target large, medium, and small-scale farms, and will be showcased at Agritechnica 2025 in Hannover alongside expanded operator training programs. Furthermore, CLAAS introduced the JAGUAR 1000 series forage harvester featuring AI-driven crop quality analysis and improved efficiency. The flagship JAGUAR 1200 model set a Guinness World Record by harvesting 4515 tons of wheatlage in 12 hours while reducing fuel use by up to 12% compared to previous models.

Shifting our focus to plant science, Origin Agritech Ltd. has entered a patent license agreement with Shandong Shunfeng Biotechnology Co., Ltd. for the Cas-SF-01 gene editing platform to advance corn breeding and hybrid development. The collaboration builds on prior work with China Agricultural University and targets regulatory genes affecting corn leaf angle to improve yield potential and planting density. Moving forward, IBI Ag has closed a $10 million Series A round led by Corteva Inc. through its Corteva Catalyst platform, with participation from The Trendlines Group, Bandera Capital, and First Imagine Ventures. The funding supports development and commercialization of antibody-based bioinsecticides designed for sustainable pest control and reduced impact on beneficial insects. Additionally, agri-tech startup Bindwell has raised $6 million in seed funding co-led by General Catalyst and A Capital, with participation from SV Angel and Paul Graham.

The company uses AI models to speed pesticide discovery, operating 4 times faster than AlphaFold, with funds directed toward R&D expansion and proprietary product development in California. Furthermore, the NitroScope project has been launched at Ghent University with 25 partners from 15 countries to improve nitrogen tracking and management. The initiative will deploy advanced sensing technologies at more than 100 sites, build a European nitrogen database, and deliver policy recommendations aligned with EU environmental goals. Finally, Genvor, in partnership with the USDA, has received U.S. Patent No. 12,458,684 for "Transgenic Corn with Antifungal Peptide AGM182." The patented technology reduces aflatoxin contamination caused by *Aspergillus flavus* and *Fusarium* species by up to 98% and was developed using Genvor's BioCypher Algorithm to provide a sustainable alternative to chemical fungicides.

Transitioning to controlled environment agriculture, Agroz Inc. will expand its AI-powered Controlled Environment Agriculture operations into the Gulf Cooperation Council and Southeast Asia, following increased interest from Oman and the UAE. The move aims to enhance food security through sustainable, high-efficiency farming supported by the company's Agroz OS and Copilot systems. Additionally, GoodLeaf Farms secured $52 million in equity financing to expand capacity at its Alberta and Quebec farms and develop a new R&D centre in Ontario. The company reported surging national demand for its baby greens and microgreens, nearly doubling by April 2025. Investors include Farm Credit Canada, Power Sustainable Lios, and McCain Foods, reflecting confidence in vertically grown Canadian produce. Furthermore, Harvest Singularity Holding Co. will invest $66 million to build a 325,000-square-foot hydroponic greenhouse at Newberry's F300 AgFoodTech Innovation Park. The facility will produce over 3 tons of leafy greens daily and create more than 50 jobs, advancing Florida's technology-driven agriculture sector. Finally, Netherlands-based SAIA Agrobotics secured €10 million in new funding, bringing total investment to €20 million. The capital will support the 2026 launch of its "plants-to-robot" automation system designed to boost yields and cut greenhouse labor by up to 50%.

Turning our attention to other developments across the agtech landscape, The Gates Foundation announced a $1.4 billion, 4-year commitment to advance climate adaptation and help smallholder farmers build resilience to extreme weather. The announcement, made during COP30 in Belem, Brazil, highlights the need for locally driven adaptation solutions as climate threats intensify across sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. Moving forward, Emirates Rawabi PSC and ReFarm Global Investments LLC have entered a strategic partnership to develop regenerative, circular, and resource-efficient solutions for food production and urban landscaping in the UAE. The collaboration aims to reduce water use, enhance soil health, and strengthen national food security while contributing to the UAE's sustainability and climate goals. Additionally, Cropcision has closed a seed funding round backed by Northern Light Capital and Partnerinvest Norr, enabling the company to expand production and hire key personnel. The funding supports Cropcision's mission to develop plastic-free, controlled-release fertilizers, aligning with upcoming EU regulations banning non-biodegradable polymers in fertilizers by 2028.

Furthermore, Qorium has raised €22 million in Series A funding from Invest-NL and LIOF, alongside existing backers Brightlands Venture Partners and Sofinnova Partners. The investment, supported by the European Commission's InvestEU guarantee scheme, will help the company scale its cultivated leather production and install new bioreactor systems in Maastricht. The company's biotechnology creates real leather from a few animal cells, eliminating the need for livestock farming while reducing waste and environmental impact. Finally, Casterra Ag Ltd. and Fantini Italia S.R.L. have announced a strategic collaboration to develop large-scale, mechanized castor cultivation systems. The partnership combines Casterra's proprietary high-yield castor seed varieties with Fantini's advanced harvesting and threshing technologies. The goal is to support the rising global demand for castor oil, projected to grow from $2.4 billion to $3.09 billion by 2030.

Looking ahead to upcoming industry events, mark your calendars for Myplant and Garden Middle East from November 15 to 17, 2025 in Dubai. Following that, World Agri-Tech Innovation Summit Dubai will take place from December 8 to 9, 2025. Then we have Agri Expo International Exhibition and Conference for Agriculture Supplies. Finally, don't miss Indoor Ag-Con from February 11 to 12, 2026 in Las Vegas, USA.

That wraps up today's episode of AgTech Digest. We explored the latest developments in agricultural technology. From Syngenta's Cropwise Open Platform expanding access to AI-powered digital agriculture to DJI Agriculture's new drone launches targeting farms of all sizes, it's clear that the agtech sector is making strides in sustainability and innovation. With significant funding rounds totaling over $130 million across IBI Ag, Bindwell, GoodLeaf Farms, Harvest Singularity, and SAIA Agrobotics, and impactful partnerships in pest monitoring, gene editing, and greenhouse automation, the future of agriculture is shaping up to be smarter and more sustainable than ever before. Thanks for joining me—I'm Anna, signing off. Stay inspired and keep pushing the boundaries of what's possible!