French Startup Amatera Raises Funding To Advance AI-Driven Tech For Climate-Smart Coffee – CoffeeTalk

French agtech startup Amatera has successfully completed a €6 million ($7 million) seed funding round to advance its AI-driven plant cell biology platform aimed at developing climate-resilient crops, specifically coffee and wine grapes. The necessity for such innovations arises from severe climate challenges; coffee-growing regions are predicted to shrink significantly by 2050, with 90% of those areas in Latin America potentially becoming unproductive. Additionally, wine production has hit a 60-year low, exacerbated by higher temperatures causing rapid grape ripening, leading some winemakers to water down their products.

In response to these pressing issues, Amatera utilizes a combination of automation, plant cell biology, and artificial intelligence to breed resilient “perennial crops.” The recent funding round, co-led by Demea Sustainable Investment and Oyster Bay Venture Capital and supported by several existing investors, has raised Amatera’s total funding to €7.5 million ($8.6 million). This capital will facilitate the expansion of engineering and scientific teams, as well as scale up automation and commercialization efforts while broadening their focus to include annual crops alongside coffee and wine grapes.

Amatera’s innovative approach seeks to tackle the limitations of traditional breeding, which can take up to 20 years and cost millions for developing new plant varieties. Their technology automates the discovery of desirable traits at the cellular level, significantly speeding up the breeding cycle by two to three times and making it up to ten times more cost-effective. The process employs advanced robotics for physical manipulation of cell lines and integrates AI-driven selection to rapidly identify high-potential candidates based on target genetic markers.

Currently, Amatera is developing premium coffee varieties that are more resilient to heat and pathogens, including a new Robustica variant and a caffeine-free Arabica. They anticipate initial testing of these lines within two years and have also begun developing a mildew-resistant wine grape. The startup plans to form strategic partnerships with seed companies to use its cellular screening platform for addressing breeding challenges in various crops, streamlining research timelines, and cutting costs.

With climate-related issues contributing to a significant hike in coffee prices, Amatera’s innovations promise to lower production costs by over 25% compared to traditional methods. Their strategy includes licensing these crops to major players in the coffee industry. Notably, because Amatera uses natural mutations and avoids genetic modifications, they sidestep the complexities of GMO regulations.

Although they face competition from established companies like Nestlé and Starbucks, which are also developing climate-resilient coffee varieties, Amatera differentiates itself through its rapid, cost-effective, and technologically advanced methods. The company sees these industry giants as potential partners for collaboration rather than direct competition. Furthermore, other innovators are exploring alternative methods for producing coffee, including plant cell culture and sustainable, bean-free alternatives, highlighting a broader movement within the industry towards sustainable agricultural practices.

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