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§ Private Profile · New York City, NY, USA
AI platform aggregating agricultural, climate, and economic data for food security, supply chains, and market insights.
Gro has raised $104.0M across 4 funding rounds.
Key people at Gro.
Gro has raised $104.0M in total across 4 funding rounds.
Gro Intelligence was an AI-powered platform based in New York, with offices in Nairobi, San Francisco, and Singapore, that aggregated global agricultural, climate, and economic data to generate forecasts and insights on food security, supply chains, and market trends. The company operated on a subscription-based model, raising over $125 million in venture capital, including an $85 million Series B round in January 2021. Its valuation peaked at $850 million before declining significantly to under $25 million by 2024. Key customers included Unilever, alongside other packaged food companies, commodities investors, and governments, while investors included Intel Capital and Africa Internet Ventures. Sara Menker, a former Morgan Stanley VP, founded the company, which saw James Cariello appointed CEO in early 2024. Gro Intelligence was founded in 2014 by Sara Menker.
Key people at Gro.
Gro Intelligence is an AI-driven agricultural intelligence platform founded by Sara Menker that optimizes global food systems to combat world hunger.[3] It serves governments, agribusinesses, and supply chain stakeholders by aggregating vast datasets on crops, weather, trade, and markets to deliver actionable insights, solving inefficiencies in agricultural decision-making and forecasting.[3]
The company emerged from Menker's recognition of opaque global food markets during her work in commodities trading, leveraging AI and big data for predictive analytics that enhance food security and supply chain resilience worldwide.[3]
Sara Menker, a Columbia Business School graduate (class of 2012), founded Gro Intelligence after experiencing firsthand the disconnects in global agricultural markets while working in Ethiopia and commodities trading in New York.[3] The idea crystallized from her efforts to understand food price volatility and supply risks, leading her to build a platform that combines satellite imagery, trade data, and economic indicators into a unified intelligence system.[3]
Early traction came from partnerships with major players in agribusiness and finance, positioning Gro as a key tool for navigating complex global food challenges amid growing climate and geopolitical pressures.[3]
Gro Intelligence rides the wave of AI applied to climate-resilient agriculture, a sector exploding due to population growth, extreme weather, and supply chain vulnerabilities exposed by events like the Ukraine conflict.[3] Its timing aligns with surging demand for data-driven sustainability, as governments and firms face mandates for net-zero emissions and food system transparency.
Market forces like advancing satellite tech and cheaper AI compute favor Gro, amplifying its influence by partnering with entities like the UN and commodity giants to shape policy and investment in global hunger mitigation.[3]
Gro Intelligence is poised to expand into predictive climate-ag modeling and blockchain-traced supply chains, capitalizing on AI advancements and ESG investing trends.[3] As food scarcity risks intensify, its platform could become infrastructure for global ag policy, evolving from analytics provider to ecosystem orchestrator—much like how data platforms transformed finance, Gro may redefine hunger-fighting tech. This positions it at the vanguard of tech's role in planetary-scale challenges.[3]
Gro has raised $104.0M across 4 funding rounds. Most recently, it raised $7.0M Seed in March 2021.
| Date | Round | Lead Investors | Other Investors | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mar 1, 2021 | $7M Seed | Framework Ventures, Michael Jordan | DBA, Makers Fund, Northzone, Joshua Schachter, A Capital, Nascent, Variant | Announced |
| Jan 1, 2021 | $85M Series B | TPG Africa | Alumni Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz, AV8 Ventures, Blisce, Deep Valley Labs, Equity Alliance, Industrifonden, Intel Capital, Khosla Ventures, Madrona Venture Group, Notable Capital, Rabbit Ventures, TEN Eleven Ventures, Katie Gray, Kevin Colas, Trae Vassallo, Dick Parsons, Eric Zinterhofer, Ronald Lauder | Announced |
| May 1, 2019 | $10M Series U | — | Deep Valley Labs, Industrifonden, Khosla Ventures, Notable Capital, Katie Gray, Kevin Colas, Trae Vassallo | Announced |
| Oct 1, 2017 | $2M Series U | — | FJ Labs, Great Oaks Venture Capital, K5 Ventures, NFX, ONE Planet Group, Mark Goines | Announced |
Gro has raised $104.0M in total across 4 funding rounds.
Gro's investors include Framework Ventures, Michael Jordan, DBA, Makers Fund, Northzone, Joshua Schachter, A Capital, Nascent, Variant, TPG Africa, Alumni Ventures, Andreessen Horowitz.