Investment in precision agriculture increases significantly by 71%, surpassing agriculture biotechnology for the first time since 2017, according to Pitchbook's report.
In the second quarter of 2025, the precision agriculture sector witnessed a significant surge in venture capital (VC) funding, with a total of $580 million raised across 36 deals. This marks a 71.2% increase in funding compared to the previous quarter, according to market intelligence platform PitchBook.
One of the top-funded startups in this period is Saga Robotics, which secured €9.5 million (approximately $10 million USD) to expand its autonomous UV-C crop protection robots in major markets such as the UK and US. The funding will be used to scale operations in high-value farming sectors like strawberries and wine grapes.
The focus of this funding wave is on automation and AI-driven solutions that aim to address the agriculture industry's persistent labor shortages. Investors are prioritising startups providing scalable automation and labor-saving solutions, such as autonomous robotics and precision crop management tools.
Interestingly, precision agriculture outperformed ag biotech in VC funding this quarter for the first time since 2017. While the total funding for ag biotech in Q2 2025 was $270 million, a 72.5% decrease compared to the previous quarter, the precise figures for precision ag VC funding, excluding the funding for Muon Space and Quantum Systems, totalled $256 million.
PitchBook predicts that significant investment will continue in the precision ag sector due to labor shortages and advancements in AI. The platform also suggests that the trend of investing more in precision ag than in ag biotech might be due to growing frustration over the gap between the promises and practical outcomes of ag biotech.
Exits remain scarce in the agtech sector, but notable exceptions include John Deere's acquisition of aerial field-scouting platform Sentera and DeHaat's purchase of smart farming app NEERX.
Puna Bio also raised $20.3 million in a late-stage investment in Q2, 2025.
Despite the cautious investment stance that has been prevalent for over a year, Q2, 2025, saw a total of $1.5 billion raised across 117 deals, marking a 22.8% decrease in value and a 22.9% decrease in deal count compared to the previous quarter. The steady contraction in deal volume has persisted since the market's high in Q1 2022.
PitchBook estimates that Q2 deal value and deal count would reach $1.8 billion and 140 deals, respectively, similar to the average deal volume of 2024 and 2023. As the agriculture industry continues to grapple with labor shortages and embraces AI and automation technologies, it is expected that the trend of increased investment in precision agriculture will continue.
- The funding secured by Saga Robotics will be utilized to scale operations in high-value farming sectors like strawberries and wine grapes, relying on advanced technology such as autonomous robotics and precision crop management tools.
- As the agriculture industry continues to struggle with labor shortages, technology and AI-driven solutions are becoming a priority for investors, with a significant investment expected to be poured into the precision agriculture sector, as predicted by PitchBook.
