NZ agritech start-up caps its first capital raise at $1.5 million

Most fruit growers would welcome the chance to produce crops in a more sustainable and economically efficient way.

New Zealand based start-up Cropsy Technologies has responded to these needs with their world-first AI-enabled crop vision system. It allows growers to identify pests and diseases early so they can be dealt with in a targeted way – reducing the need for blanket spraying – and helping prevent crop loss.

Cropsy has raised $1.5 million in capital in their first – over-subscribed – funding round.

Their crop vision system combines mobile, continuous and GPS-tracked high-definition image capture, with AI-enabled software to analyse crops and aid growers in their decision making.

Attached to a tractor and powered by a tractor battery, the Cropsy vision system sees and understands every single plant – profiling each leaf, fruit, shoot and trunk, in real time – while a grower runs their daily crop operations. It eliminates sun, shadows, and reflections from the captured images, preserving accurate colours and textures regardless of the time or weather.

Their AI-enabled software shows how crops are performing and changing over time and gives an estimation of crop yields. The result being more insight-driven crop management, and a more sustainable approach to crop production, as resources aren't used if not needed.

Cropsy Technologies was founded in 2019, by Leila Deljkovic and Ali Alomari, who studied engineering at Auckland University. They've since been joined by co-founders Rory Buchanan and Winston Su.

As a company, Cropsy has focussed their efforts on vineyards because grapes need constant care and attention and currently less than one percent of vines are monitored in a manual process.

Some of their trial partners include wine giants like Pernod Ricard Winemakers and Indevin, and Marisco Vineyards in Marlborough. The company plans to apply its technology to other fruit eventually.

The company's first capital raise, which they capped at $1.5 million but reached $1.8 million in commitments, was led by Angel Investors Marlborough (AIM); an early-stage angel investment group based in Blenheim, which has over 100 members.

AIM's Tracy Atkin led the deal and says the level of interest and confidence in this young agritech company is evident in the over-subscribed funding round, which they closed 2 months early.

"The demand from both investors to be part of this journey and customers to sign-up to this world-leading technology is testament to what has already been achieved and their potential for future growth," she says.

Investors include AIM, NZGCP's Aspire NZ Seed Fund, Sir Stephen Tindall's K1W1, Icehouse Ventures, Angel HQ, Enterprise Angels, and the Impact Enterprise Fund.

Cropsy was supported by NZTE's investment team throughout their capital raise. They took part in NZTE's investment showcase InvestHer, in April 2021, which involved a rigorous preparation process and allowed them to pitch to over 100 investors. They also participated in 1:1 sessions with New Zealand and Australian investors to test their proposition.

Leila says she and Ali are thrilled to have such support from their investors and partners, who share their vision and passion to help their technology go "from Blenheim to Bordeaux and beyond".

"There's nothing better than seeing our system out there in the field and creating tech that will be accessible to every grower," she says.

Ali says it's humbling to be backed by New Zealand's finest in agritech, and their innovative, early-adopter customers who they couldn't do their work without:

"This capital injection enables us to reach our goal of looking after 10 million vines by the end of 2023."

Whether you're an investor looking to explore the unique investment opportunities New Zealand has to offer, or you're a New Zealand organisation wanting to raise capital for global growth, the New Zealand Trade and Enterprise (NZTE) Investment team is ready to help.

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