Industry leaders, entrepreneurs and innovators from a range of startups will hold a panel discussion on the opportunities in advanced agricultural technology during a May 29 Heuermann Lecture symposium at Nebraska Innovation Campus. The theme is “Innovations in Agricultural Technology: Cultivating Tomorrow’s Farms.”
In addition, investment professionals will share insights on the financial ecosystem supporting Midwest entrepreneurial ventures in ag tech.
The free public symposium will take place at 3 p.m. in the Nebraska Innovation Campus Conference Center and will be livestreamed here. There is no RSVP requirement. A networking reception will follow at 4:30 p.m.
The startup panel discussion will last 45 minutes, followed by a 30-minute Q&A session. The panel members represent a diverse set of ag tech companies:
Marble Technologies (meat processing automation), Jordyn Bader;
Nave Analytics (irrigation efficiency through real-time data supported by climate and crop modeling), Jessica Korinek;
ALA Engineering (software and hardware innovations in cattle feeding operations), Jacob Hansen;
Grain Weevil (grain bin safety and management robot), Chad Johnson;
Corral Technologies (cattle collar technology providing virtual fence solutions), Jack Keating;
Sentinel Fertigation (multispectral aerial crop imagery of crops enabling fertigation recommendations to manage nitrogen use), Shane Forney.
A 15-minute discussion on financing support in ag tech will follow. The panel will include Ben Williamson and Mike Jung with Grit Road Partners, and Dan Hoffman and Josh DeMers with Invest Nebraska/The Combine.
Grit Road Partners, headquartered in Omaha, works with ag tech entrepreneurs and aims to boost the Midwest as a global ag technology hub.
Invest Nebraska has partnered with the state Department of Economic Development since 2012 to provide investment capital to early-stage startups in Nebraska. In 2019, Invest Nebraska was recognized by Pitchbook as the second-most active venture capital firm in the Mountain and Midwest region. That same year, Invest Nebraska founded The Combine as an incubator to support entrepreneurs in food and agriculture.
The Heuermann Lecture series, in the University of Nebraska–Lincoln’s Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources, is made possible through a gift from B. Keith and Norma Heuermann of Phillips, Nebraska. The Heuermanns are longtime university supporters with a strong commitment to Nebraska’s production agriculture, natural resources, rural areas and people.
