The world’s first Drought Venture Studio is on the hunt for agtech ideas to future proof farmers

Startup builder Beanstalk Ventures recently harvested the first crop of agtech startups from its latest program, the Drought Venture Studio, a 12-week program backed by the federal government’s Future Drought Fund.

Eight startups and their leaders were selected for the recent Innovation Showcase, whittled down from 24 chosen for the inaugural program from among 200 applications, and are now ready to secure funding, find a co-founder, and launch their solutions to market.

The top 8 had the chance to pitch agtech solutions to enhance climate resilience for Australian farmers to more than 100 agtech industry experts, investors, and others at the showcase at the Greenhouse Climate Tech Hub in Sydney recently.

They were:

• Caecilia Potter – CEO, Venso Grow, which is revolutionising seed treatment for enhanced crop resilience during drought.
• Darryl Lyons – cofounder, Rainstick, integrating Indigenous knowledge with modern bioelectric technology to boost seed germination, vigour and biomass.
• Angus Croser – founder, Ag SafeGuard, a farmer-led innovation that protects pivot sprinkler heads from damage, enabling pivots to irrigate (and fertigate) closer to the ground for maximum water efficiency.
• Lachlan Vogt – managing director, AIgorithm, using geospatial data and AI-driven monitoring solutions to help financial institutions and the supply chain better understand climate risk and resilience around rural properties.
• Chris Lucani – founder, Cavicam, a plant monitoring tool that helps researchers and growers monitor plant water stress in real-time to optimise irrigation decisions and improve fruit quality and taste.
• Edward Barraclough – founder, Drone Hand, which is enhancing real-time livestock condition monitoring and safety productivity and security through advanced drone technology.
• Dr Peter Dart & Evgeny Sagulenko – cofounders, Darts Biotech, which is pioneering a biological product to ensure mould-free silage for safer, more nutritious fodder.
• Nick Johnston – founder, Aquifa, which is building a software platform to help water brokers with regulatory compliance in order to improve efficiency of water trading, ensuring water is valued and gets to where it’s needed most.

The Drought Venture Studio’s investment committee, which included Sarah Nolet from Tenacious Venture, Kylie Frazer from Flying Fox Ventures and Patti Chu from Silverstrand Capital took a closer look at who to back with Beanstalk’s capital, selecting four – Venso Grow, Cavicam, Darts Biotech & Aquifa – to advance to the program’s second phase, where they will receive nearly a year of support to further develop their solutions, preparing them for commercialisation.

Head of Venture Studio Marcus Agnew said the Innovator Showcase highlighted ideas that could transform the tools Australian farmers use to combat drought.

“Drought and abiotic stresses have always been Australian agriculture’s greatest challenges and are only set to worsen as climate change intensifies, making droughts more frequent, severe, and prolonged,” he said.

“For the first time, we’ve created a programme to support homegrown Australian innovation, getting real, commercial-ready solutions into farmers’ hands.”

One of the finalists, Cecilia Potter, CEO of Venso Grow, said the program was invaluable in developing her startup.

“Beanstalk’s Drought Venture Studio provided exceptional support—refining my business model, sharpening my pitch, and connecting me with leading agribusiness experts and potential investors,” she said.

“This one-of-a-kind program and venture studio model are essential for advancing agtech innovation and equipping innovators with the tools needed for successful commercialisation.”

Drought Venture Studio has now onboarded its second cohort of 24 innovators taking part in the program over Summer, concluding next February 2025.

Applications for the third cohort will open in early 2025, with researchers, entrepreneurs, and innovators with agricultural drought resilience solution invited to apply

More information at ventures.beanstalkagtech.com

Register your interest here.