Announcing the First Drought Venture Studio Innovators
Beanstalk Ventures is delighted to announce our first cohort of innovators for the Drought Venture Studio.
Applications for the second cohort are open until 9pm 29 September AEST. Apply today.
In partnership with the Australian Government’s Future Drought Fund, and the national network of Drought Resilience Adoption & Innovation Hubs, this is the first of four cohorts of innovators that will commercialise new technologies to improve the drought and climate resilience of Australian farmers.
These 24 innovators have been selected following a highly competitive application process. Over 200 expressions of interest were received for the inaugural cohort, and the Beanstalk Selection Committee considered IP, market potential, drought impact, and whether each innovator was a fit for the venture studio model to make its decision.
Our team of Venture Builders are now preparing to work 1-1 with each innovator to validate the commercial potential of their IP over the next 90 days before entering a dedicated phase of building each venture.
Over 40% of our innovators are research teams from public research organisations, including The University of Queensland (UQ), University of Tasmania (UTAS), James Cook University (JCU), CSIRO, and the Cooperative Research Centre for High Performance Soils (Soil CRC).
We are proud to announce our innovators for the inaugural cohort of the Drought Venture Studio:
Lachlan Vogt
Lachlan Vogt, Managing Director of AIgorithm, has over a decade of AI expertise and provides scalable monitoring solutions for Australian farmers. His technology leverages 45 years of soil and vegetation data to help farmers optimise water management and mitigate drought risks.
Dr. Munir Sadiq
Dr. Munir Sadiq, a Research Engineer at CSIRO, specializes in advanced materials science and energy-efficient processes. His work on the Atmospheric Water Generator (AWG) is designed to capture moisture from the air in low humidity to ensure water supply during drought.
Caecilia Potter
Caecilia Potter is the CEO of early-stage agtech startup VensoGrow,. VensoGrow is revolutionising seed treatment with an all-in-one solution that enhances crop resilience, providing critical protection and growth support during drought conditions.
Peter Dart
Peter Dart, an Associate Professor at UQ, has 50 years of experience in agricultural microbiology and natural resource management. His innovative application HayRite ensures silage is mould-free to provide a reliable source of fodder during drought.
Angus Croser
Angus Croser is the founder of Ag SafeGuard and a fifth-generation farmer. He developed the Sprinkler SafeGuard after experiencing severe drought on his family farm. This patented irrigation solution saves farmers 30% more water and energy, making it crucial for sustainable farming in drought-prone areas.
Dr. Liqi Han
Dr. Liqi Han, a digital horticulture researcher at UQ, integrates AI and Digital Twins to optimize horticultural practices. His technology reduces spray drift and water usage by up to 50%, offering an adaptable solution to improve the drought resilience of high-value crops.
Alexander Soeriyadi
Alexander Soeriyadi is a chemical engineer with a decade of experience who has founded Rheologi to develop sustainable agricultural products. His innovations balance environmental impact with profitability, ensuring farmers don’t have to choose between people, planet, or profit.
Dr. Cong Vu
Dr. Cong Vu, founder of NanoSoils Bio, uses nanotechnology to create sustainable pesticides that protect crops under climate stress. His innovation aims to reduce water usage and chemical residues, helping farmers maintain productivity during drought.
Darryl Lyons
Darryl Lyons, a Maiawali man and founder of Rainstick, integrates Indigenous knowledge with modern technology to address climate challenges in agriculture. His technology has shown potential to increase crop yield, particularly under drought conditions, by enhancing germination and early plant growth.
Tim van der Laan
Tim van der Laan leads the functional nanosystems team at CSIRO, focusing on applying nanomaterials to produce pure water at reduced cost compared to established technology. The GraphAir graphene membrane offers an economical, sustainable solution for treating brackish groundwater and contaminated wastewater, increasing drought resilience and reducing environmental impact for large-scale water users.
Dr. Ramesh Thiruvenkatachari
Dr. Ramesh Thiruvenkatachari, a principal research scientist at CSIRO, develops modular, scalable water remediation systems tailored for off-grid and remote applications. His innovation provides a sustainable alternative to conventional desalination, which increases water security and reduces waste for agriculture and other industries under stress from drought.
Chris Lucani
Chris Lucani has a background in coding and environmental science and invented the Cavicam, a tool for precisely monitoring water usage in plants. This technology allows farmers, especially those facing drought, to make informed irrigation decisions, optimise water resources and improve crop outcomes.
Savannah McGuirk
Savannah McGuirk, founder of Remote Water Analytics, leverages her expertise in remote sensing and data science to enhance drought resilience in Australian agriculture. Remote Water Analytics provides farmers with real-time data and practical tools to optimise water management, soil health, and sustainability.
Sasha (Alexander) Mikheyev
Professor Sasha (Alexander) Mikheyev is an evolutionary biologist whose work focuses on understanding how organisms adapt to rapid ecological changes, with a particular emphasis on honey bee health. His work has led to the development of a novel, more sensitive molecular assay to detect Varroa mites, a critical innovation that enhances the reliability of on-site screening, crucial for maintaining pollination services during drought conditions when bee nutrition is already compromised.
Nick Johnston
Nick Johnston is an engineer-turned-entrepreneur working to create an open and efficient tradeable water market in the Murray-Darling Basin. He is dedicated to ensuring that water is allocated efficiently during droughts, and works with many stakeholders across the industry to get water where it's needed most.
Andres Ruiz
Andres Ruiz is an MPhil candidate and Founder in Residence at JCU, leading research on plant-derived biomaterials and treatments for diseases. He is spearheading a project to transform the sugarcane industry in Far North Queensland by developing sustainable biopolymers and providing alternative revenue streams for local farmers.
Jean-Philippe Ral
Jean-Philippe Ral is a Principal Research Scientist at CSIRO, specialising in cereal starch degradation and crop resilience. His work integrates genomics, gene editing, and data science to develop predictive tools that forecast crop yields, quality, and other data necessary the effective management of resources during drought.
Nicholas Stamatiou
Nicholas Stamatiou is the founder of Whole Green Foods, an early-stage Australian foodtech company revolutionising the food industry by combining technological innovation with sustainable practices. Nick built and ran the IP Strategy and Commercialisation team for Deloitte across the Asia Pacific region, and has been recognised for seven consecutive years as one of the top 300 IP strategists in the world.
Joe Finneran
Joe Finneran, CEO of MADE Energy, has extensive experience in managing capital projects and is an expert in anaerobic digestion, soil health, and renewable energy. His work focuses on improving soil health and regenerative agriculture, helping farmers mitigate the impacts of drought through sustainable practices.
Simon Edwards
Simon Edwards represents SoilCRC and is the Lead Research Engineer at the Tasmanian Institute of Agriculture Ag-tech Innovation Centre with over 30 years of experience in engineering, software development, and agricultural science. He is excited about the impact of cost-effective soil profiling tools like the electronic nose QUOLL ® that help farmers make informed decisions to improve drought resilience.
Edward Barraclough
Edward Barraclough is the founder of Drone-Hand, a company focused on improving the productivity and wellbeing of livestock through advanced drone technology. His innovation aims to provide security for farmers and save time, especially during droughts and uncertain climate conditions.
Dr. Chao Chen
Dr. Chao Chen is a researcher at CSIRO focusing on climate-responsive cropping strategies to improve the productivity and sustainability of Australian farming systems. Her work empowers farmers to reduce yield and economic losses during droughts, helping them build resilience against climate uncertainty.
Michael Brown
Michael Brown, a chemist turned entrepreneur, is passionate about using technology to provide small-scale farmers with agronomic insights, enabling them to thrive in all conditions, including drought. He leads Orchard Mate, a platform that increases drought resilience by optimising irrigation management through real-time, tree-specific insights.
Zane Sheffield
Zane Sheffield, CEO and Co-founder of Agtech By Design, grew up on his family's vineyard and has been an entrepreneur since high school. His technology focuses on saving chemicals and increasing resource efficiency, which is particularly beneficial for farmers managing drought conditions.
We are now accepting expressions of interest for the second cohort of the Drought Venture Studio with final applications closing at 9pm 29 September 2024 AEST Apply today.
