Source.ag, an artificial intelligence (AI) provider for greenhouse growers, has closed $23 million in its Series A funding round, bringing the company's total funding to $35 million in just under two years. The Series A funding round is led by Astanor Ventures and includes investments from Acre Venture Partners and several of the Netherlands' greenhouse operators. Growers have co-invested before. Source.ag works with Harvest House and Growers United, among others.
Ernst van Bruggen and Rien Kamman, founders of Source.ag. The AI company, founded in 2020, already raised $2 million in 2021 and $10 million in 2022. Meanwhile, the company has 70 people. There were 20 at the beginning of 2022.
New AI products
Source.ag launched its first commercial products in the summer of 2022. "We will use the new funds to introduce two new AI products that will drive safe, reliable, and climate-resilient food production by supporting greenhouse growers with advice on the optimal way to grow their crops," the company says. "With the global demand for greenhouse agriculture rising, Source.ag will empower growers worldwide to accelerate their growth and operate facilities more efficiently." By enabling more growers to operate more facilities more efficiently through pioneering tech, Source is looking to make greenhouse agriculture accessible, profitable, and globally scalable
The Dutch company has increased tenfold the number of users of its products in just 12 months, partnering with the growers to help increase vegetable yields in the face of the growing energy and climate crises.
According to the investors, upholding the trillion-dollar potential of the fresh produce industry, the new investment will see Source.ag enables growers to operate at optimized efficiency using its AI technology to track and improve cultivations. "Source.ag focuses on the largest global fresh vegetable segments, such as tomatoes and peppers, with the ambition to ultimately help all fruit and vegetable growers. After the successful commercial launch and implementation of our first product, Source Track, we will be launching two new products in 2023: Source Cultivate and Source Control will enable growers to simulate full seasons of crop growth tailored to specific genes and crop varieties in order to grow their crops in the best way possible."
The new funding will also help Source.ag expand its AI to support even more crop types and farming methods.
Rien Kamman, Paul Grootscholten, and Ernst van Bruggen in one of the greenhouse-driven greenhouses of Agro Care with the help of Source.ag based on artificial intelligence during a visit last spring. Agro Care sees clear benefits in working with AI technology.
Arnout Dijkhuizen, Investment Principal at Astanor Ventures, said: "We are extremely happy to continue our support of Source.ag. We have been genuinely impressed with the team's mission and accomplishments since our Seed investment last year. Focusing truly on where tech meets nature, Source.ag has succeeded where many have said it was impossible: cracking standardization, data gathering, and plant phenotyping with AI models that can simulate plant biology and help to optimize photosynthesis. More importantly, they are helping growers across the world operate their farms more efficiently, making greenhouse farming globally accessible and scalable, thereby democratizing access to fruit and vegetables."
"I am continually blown away by the expertise and craftsmanship of the growers we work with," added Rien Kamman, CEO and co-founder of Source.ag. "They are true "plant masters" who put healthy fruits and veggies on our plates by growing tasty fresh produce in a highly effective way, using only very few resources. However, to feed our planet's growing population in a durable, resource-efficient, and healthy manner, we need to do more and put the power of AI into the hands of growers worldwide. Our technology provides growers with real-time, highly tailored advice on how to optimally grow their crops, and we support them in running a successful growing operation. We are proud to have Astanor Ventures, Acre Ventures Partners, and leading Dutch growers' continued support in our mission to empower the world's growers. With this funding, we'll introduce further groundbreaking products so even more growers can scale healthy food production and feed more people in a sustainable way."
Lucas Mann, Co-Founder & Managing Partner at Acre Venture Partners, said: "Greenhouse agriculture is one of the key answers to climate-resilient production of fresh fruits and vegetables. Source.ag has an incredible team and installed technology that has already proven to be a solution to help growers answer challenges in our global food supply. Deep and expanding partnerships with top growers around the world continues to demonstrate how impactful their technology is and how quickly it will be adopted."
For more information:
Source.ag
info@source.ag
www.source.ag