Investor Profile: Radicle Growth — Thesis, Cheque Size & How to Apply

Radicle Growth is a San Diego-based agtech and foodtech investor founded in 2016. It does not wait for deal flow to arrive. Instead, it runs open competitions called Radicle Challenges to find the most promising early-stage agriculture and food technologies in the world, then funds the winners and helps them commercialise.

The thesis: find breakthroughs, then build them

Radicle Growth describes itself as a global innovation platform investing in and accelerating the most transformative technologies in agriculture and food. Its platform combines deep domain expertise with a hands-on model to help founders navigate commercialisation, technology complexity and global growth. The firm is backed by leading agtech investors including Finistere Ventures, Bayer Crop Science, DuPont Pioneer and OurCrowd, and it launched in 2016 with a $15 million fund.

The challenge model is the point. Rather than relying on warm introductions, Radicle Growth invites companies from anywhere in the world to apply, reviews them through a diligence committee, and invests in the winners, giving founders a route to capital that does not depend on who they know.

Sectors and stages

Radicle Growth invests at seed and early stage in agtech and foodtech: genomics and plant sciences, seed technology, biologicals for crop protection and nutrition, digital agriculture, and disruptive or novel farm systems. Companies of any size, at any stage, from anywhere in the world may apply to its challenges, and pre-revenue companies are welcome.

Fund size and cheque size

Radicle Growth does not publicly disclose its current fund size. Its challenge cheques are public and concrete: early challenges invested up to $250,000 in each winner, the Radicle Corn Value Chain Challenge offered up to $1 million to its pitch-day winner, and the Radicle Corn Challenge invested $1.75 million in total between selected companies.

Notable portfolio companies

BioLumic, which uses light treatments to improve crop traits. Aromyx, a taste and smell sensing platform for food and agriculture. TeleSense, a grain storage monitoring company that was acquired. FA Bio, a microbial discovery company. Pluton Biosciences, a microbial product developer. FarmSense, a pest monitoring company. SWARM Engineering, an AI platform for agricultural operations, and Leaf, a farm data infrastructure company.

Partners and programmes

The Radicle Challenges are run with corporate partners that can become customers and distribution channels. The Radicle Renewables Challenge, launched with John Deere, Land O'Lakes and AgRogue Growth Partners, opened applications on 19 October 2026 and runs through 20 November 2026, seeking technologies from renewable fuels and feedstocks to materials, chemicals and carbon opportunities. Earlier challenges were sponsored by Nutrien and by United States corn farmers, with AgRogue Growth Partners connecting winners to agricultural retailers and farmers through trusted retail channels.

How to apply for funding

Founders apply through the challenges page at radicle.vc/challenge, where open challenges and their deadlines are listed. Applications must be submitted in English, pilots are desirable but optional, and selected companies are contacted directly for follow-up diligence. General enquiries go to [email protected]. For agtech founders, a challenge application is the most direct route to a Radicle Growth cheque, and it comes with access to the corporate partners behind each challenge.