Agtech - So What?

Seven years ago, agtech in Australia was still in its infancy. There were bold predictions, a flurry of startups, and an emerging ecosystem of programs and investors to back them. So how have things panned out?

In this live stage recording at the 2026 AgriFutures evokeAG event in Melbourne, Sarah Nolet is joined by Sam Duncan, founder of GXLab (formerly FarmLab and Ziltek) and Natalie Engel, a QLD-based cattle producer. Together, they reflect on the last seven years of the Aussie agtech ecosystem: the hype cycles, the pivots, and the very human realities behind building technology in agriculture.

Back in 2019 at the first evokeAG event, both Sam and Natalie pitched two very different ideas. Sam was an outsider to agriculture with a vision to use soil data and soil carbon to tackle climate change. While as a farmer, Natalie was reverse-pitching a problem: the frustrating reality of livestock traceability paperwork and the need for better digital tools.

Seven years later, neither could have predicted where their agtech journeys would end up.

Sarah, Sam, and Natalie discuss:

What the agtech ecosystem looked like in 2019 and how expectations around soil carbon, digitization, and traceability have evolved.

Why building agtech startups often requires navigating both the realities of farming and the pressures of venture-backed growth.

The emotional toll of entrepreneurship in agriculture.

Why the next decade of agtech may be driven less by hype and more by resilience, cost pressures, and geopolitical shifts affecting agriculture.

Useful Links:

Agriculture’s technology future: How connectivity can yield new growth | McKinsey

FarmLab’s journey to GXLab: From Startup Alley to global soil solutions - evokeAG.

Seven Years On, evokeAG. Returns to Melbourne to Chart Agtech’s Next Frontier

Beyond the funding winter: Australia's agtech opportunity - evokeAG.

Meet Natalie Engel - Cattle farmer and agtech enthusiast | Mobble

Companies mentioned: Ceres Tag, Halter, Agovor, AgriProve, Mobble, OptiWeigh, AgFrontier 

For more information and resources, visit our website. 

The information in this post is not investment advice or a recommendation to invest. It is general information only and does not take into account your investment objectives, financial situation or needs. Before making an investment decision you should seek financial advice from a professional financial adviser. Whilst we believe the information is correct, we provide no warranty of accuracy, reliability or completeness.

While agrifood innovation often celebrates bold founders and breakthrough technologies, what happens when the incentives of corporates, startups and investors don’t quite align?

In this live recording from evokeAG in Melbourne, Sarah Nolet is joined by Brad Fruth, Director of Innovation at Beck's Hybrids, and Frank Wooten, CEO of ArkeaBio and co-founder of Vence (acquired by Merck Animal Health).

Together, they explore the “sweet spot” of agtech innovation, i.e. the balance between what customers and corporations want, while recognizing the constraints that innovators and investors face.

Brad shares how Beck’s Hybrids, the largest family-owned retail seed company in the US, approaches innovation: rather than having a corporate venture arm, they focus on being internal problem-solvers and trusted matchmakers between startups.

Meanwhile, Frank Wooten speaks candidly about the realities of raising venture capital in agriculture; where billion-dollar exits are rare, timelines are long, and alignment with customers matters more than valuation headlines.

Sarah, Brad, and Frank discuss:

Why “free pilots” can devalue agtech products before they’ve proven themselves.

How corporations can support innovation without becoming distracted by it.

The risks founders face when fundraising incentives distort execution priorities.

The surprising advantages of Australian agriculture, from customer density to experimentation culture.

Useful Links:

Expanding the tools in the innovation toolkit: how agri-food corporates can engage with startups

Building a Ladder to Commercial Success for Deep Tech Founders

Disrupting the AgTech Ecosystem with Ron Adner

4 Tips for How Agri Corporates Can Innovate By Working With Startups

For more information and resources, visit our website. 

The information in this post is not investment advice or a recommendation to invest. It is general information only and does not take into account your investment objectives, financial situation or needs. Before making an investment decision you should seek financial advice from a professional financial adviser. Whilst we believe the information is correct, we provide no warranty of accuracy, reliability or completeness.

While farmer distrust of AI remains a key adoption barrier, will farm businesses that are being set up for an AI future have a competitive advantage?
Paul Windemuller is a pioneering first-generation farmer and Nuffield Scholar from Coopersville, Michigan (USA). Along with his wife Brittany, 
Paul built his farm from the ground up with limited capital, relying on ingenuity, automation, and data-driven decision-making to grow Dream Winds Dairy into a highly tech-enabled operation.
In this episode, Paul shares his unconventional journey into dairy farming from digging parlor pits by hand and retrofitting sheds on a shoestring budget, to becoming an early adopter of robotics, wearable sensors, and AI-enabled tools. Paul didn’t grow up on a farm, so technology became a way to compensate for what he calls a lack of “cow sense,” helping him make faster decisions around health, breeding, and herd performance.
As AI accelerates, Paul argues that adoption is less about buying another gadget and more about building the underlying foundations: connectivity, clean data, and a culture of curiosity within farming teams.
Sarah and Paul discuss:
How a lack of traditional farming experience became a catalyst for data-driven innovation.
Why AI should be viewed as a utility, like electricity, rather than a single technology purchase.
The practical steps farmers can take today to become “AI ready.” 
Why governance models that keep value with farmers and rural communities could determine whether AI delivers long-term benefits.
Why farmer-owned data infrastructure and interoperability may be the next big innovation in agriculture.
Useful Links:
Leading the Herd: AI, Insight, and the Next Agricultural Revolution, (Paul’s Nuffield report)
Getting Into the weeds: the AI data dilemma
Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Work in Agriculture
Yield maps killed agtech software, can AI fix it? (report)
For more information and resources, visit our website. 
The information in this post is not investment advice or a recommendation to invest. It is general information only and does not take into account your investment objectives, financial situation or needs. Before making an investment decision you should seek financial advice from a professional financial adviser. Whilst we believe the information is correct, we provide no warranty of accuracy, reliability or completeness.

While there is a growing recognition of the importance of indigenous knowledge in agriculture, all too-often, First Nations people are being asked to fit in with an established model. What if we flipped the script to create food systems that are led by indigenous principles?
That’s what Jacob Birch is aiming to do in reawakening a native grains industry in Australia. He’s a proud Gamilaraay man, scholar, Churchill Fellow, and entrepreneur who founded Yaamarra & Yarral, a wholesaler of ancient grains and retailer of stone milled flour.
In this episode, Jacob shares his journey into native grains, beginning with biodiversity and landscape restoration, and expanding into food, culture, and economic sovereignty. He explains why native grasses are keystone species for Australia’s ecosystems, how Indigenous Australians managed grain systems for tens of thousands of years, and why these histories, including bread-making, are still largely absent from mainstream narratives.
In his Churchill Fellowship, Jacob draws on lessons from First Nations communities in North America, exploring what Indigenous-led food systems can look like when the goal is not export-driven scale, but healthy communities, country, and self-determined economic development.
Sarah and Jacob discuss:
The nutritional value of native grains and their role in climate resilience and food sovereignty.
Why post–farm gate ownership is crucial for First Nations people.
How subsidies could potentially support indigenous-led enterprises in food and agriculture.
The realities of building a native grains industry; from land access to challenges in processing.
Useful Links:
Jacob Birch, Churchill Fellowship report
Grasslands Documentary 
Jacob Birch researcher profile
Modernising Indigenous Native Grains Processing | AgriFutures Australia
White Earth Nation
Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa
Native Farm Bill Coalition
Tribal Elder Food Box - Feeding America Eastern Wisconsin
First Nations Australians in Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry - DAFF
2030 Roadmap - National Farmers' Federation
For more information and resources, visit our website. 
The information in this post is not investment advice or a recommendation to invest. It is general information only and does not take into account your investment objectives, financial situation or needs. Before making an investment decision you should seek financial advice from a professional financial adviser. Whilst we believe the information is correct, we provide no warranty of accuracy, reliability or completeness.

We’ve hit a tipping point for autonomy in agriculture, so how far off is fully autonomous farming? In this episode, Matthew Pryor sits down with Brett McMickell, Chief Technology Officer at Kubota North America, to unpack his view on what autonomy can deliver in agriculture and why it’s closer than many people think.
Brett’s career spans spacecraft control systems and multi-vehicle autonomy. Today at Kubota, he’s helping guide autonomy strategy inside one of the world’s largest and oldest agricultural equipment manufacturers. Brett’s focus is about ensuring the technology solves on the ground problems for farmers and is driven by customer demand, rather than by the tech itself.
Matthew and Brett discuss:
What supervised autonomy will look like in 1 - 3 years.
Why smart implements and sensing are just as important as autonomous power systems.
Why AI in agriculture is still under-appreciated.
What autonomy will look like in 10 years (without human intervention).
How autonomy could completely change farm layouts, machine sizes, and operating metrics.
How Kubota decides whether to build, partner with, or acquire new technology.
Useful Links:
Kubota USA Innovation
Kubota acquires Bloomfield Robotics, so what?
Kubota to acquire automation company AgJunction - Future Farming
Kubota Concept Tractor | Innovation | Kubota Global Site
Kubota launches first autonomous hydrogen-fuelled tractor - Farmers Weekly
How can agtech startups and corporates do more together?
Seeing into the future of farm autonomy (w/ SwarmFarm Robotics)
Have we hit a tipping point for autonomy in ag?
For more information and resources, visit our website. 
The information in this post is not investment advice or a recommendation to invest. It is general information only and does not take into account your investment objectives, financial situation or needs. Before making an investment decision you should seek financial advice from a professional financial adviser. Whilst we believe the information is correct, we provide no warranty of accuracy, reliability or completeness.