InnerPlant
InnerPlant genetically engineers crops that fluoresce when stressed, using the InnerSoy biosensor and CropVoice subscription platform to deliver Midwestern soybean farmers early-warning fungal-disease alerts via retailers and the John Deere Operations Center.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2018
- HeadquartersDavis, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What InnerPlant does
InnerPlant is a Davis, California-based agricultural biotechnology company founded in 2018 by Shely Aronov and Rod Kumimoto that genetically engineers crops to emit optical fluorescent signals when their immune systems detect stress from fungal pathogens, nutrient deficiencies, or drought. Its first commercial product, InnerSoy, is a soybean variety engineered to fluoresce within roughly 48 hours of fungal infection — and 4-6 weeks before visible symptoms — allowing detection by ground equipment or by satellite-mounted hyperspectral cameras. This biological signal layer feeds CropVoice, a subscription insights platform launched in August 2024 that aggregates InnerSoy sensor data, laboratory validation, agronomic scouting, weather inputs, and predictive modeling to deliver disease alerts to farmers via SMS, email, and the John Deere Operations Center, with pathogen-specific identification of white mold and frogeye leaf spot.
InnerPlant's go-to-market combines a B2B2C distribution model with retailer-mediated sales to Midwest soybean growers — CropLife 100 retailers (CPI, CHS, SunAg, GROWMARK) enroll farmer customers and bundle CropVoice with existing agronomy services — alongside direct engagement via the InnerCircle farmer community and demonstration plots at partner farms. Strategic integrations with John Deere (financing + Operations Center distribution), Syngenta (chemistry pairing with See & Spray), Satellogic (orbital signal detection), and Mertec (seed-trait commercialization) layer alongside a planned InnerCorn product extension. The company has raised approximately $51.95M across a 2021 seed round led by MS&AD Ventures, a 2022 Series A led by John Deere, a 2023-2024 grant from the United Soybean Board, and a 2024 $30M Series B led by a farmer alliance headed by Coutts Agro.
Revenue mechanics blend per-acre CropVoice subscriptions (quote-based, annual billing) with longer-term licensing and royalty income from embedding InnerSoy trait technology into major seed companies' germplasm, plus an aspirational data-monetization layer over the plant-sensor network. The company completed both USDA regulatory status review and FDA New Protein Consultation for the fluorescent protein used in InnerSoy, clearing the regulatory pathway for commercial deployment. As of 2025 the CropVoice network covered approximately 50,000 acres across Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, and South Dakota, with a publicly stated plan to scale tenfold to 500,000 acres in 2026.
InnerPlant firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- InnerPlant
- Legal name
- InnerPlant
- Website
- https://innerplant.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2018
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- InnerPlant genetically engineers crops that fluoresce when stressed, using the InnerSoy biosensor and CropVoice subscription platform to deliver Midwestern soybean farmers early-warning fungal-disease alerts via retailers and the John Deere Operations Center.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
InnerPlant industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Agricultural Biotechnology / Precision Agriculture Software
- NAICS
- Soybean Farming (111110)
- SIC
- Agricultural Services (700)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Crop Scouting & Pest/Disease Detection (Digital Scouting, Computer Vision, Alerts) (AFAGALAI)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Precision Sensing & Monitoring (Soil/Weather Stations, In-Field Sensors, IoT) (AFAGALAB), Remote Sensing & Imagery Analytics (Satellite, Drone, Aerial) (AFABAMAB), Farm Management Information Systems (FMIS) & Digital Recordkeeping (AFABAMAD), Pathogen & Disease Diagnostics Services (Plant, Soil, Water) (AFACAKAG)
Keywords
Where InnerPlant is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Davis
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
InnerPlant business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- CropVoice Subscription Service: Farmers subscribe to the CropVoice disease alert network through local agricultural retailers. The service provides real-time disease alerts and scouting reports for soybean acres. Pricing is quote-based per acre covered.
- Seed Technology Licensing: InnerPlant licenses its fluorescent trait technology to major seed companies. The company aims to embed its InnerSoy technology into seeds sold by major seed companies, earning royalty revenue per acre when the technology is deployed in every seed.
- Signal and Data Monetization: Long-term strategy to own and monetize the signals and data generated by the plant sensor network. The company positions itself as a data analytics business rather than a traditional seed company.
- Fungicide Application Optimization: While not directly selling fungicides, CropVoice helps farmers optimize timing and reduce unnecessary applications, creating value through improved ROI on existing crop protection investments ($30-40 per acre typically spent on fungicide).
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Annual | CropVoice Disease Alert Network - Regional Coverage |
Go-to-market motion4 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels6 records
InnerPlant product offering
Product offeringCore offering
InnerPlant develops genetically engineered Living Sensor plants (InnerSoy soybeans) that emit optical fluorescent signals when their immune systems detect fungal pathogens, and operates the CropVoice insights platform that converts these signals into disease alerts and 'spray/don't spray' recommendations for soybean farmers. The company licenses its biosensor trait technology to seed companies and distributes CropVoice through agricultural retailers and the John Deere Operations Center.
Product overview
InnerPlant operates as a seed technology company with a platform-plus-products architecture. The core offering is the CropVoice insights platform, which is powered by InnerSoy—genetically engineered soybean plants that emit fluorescent signals when detecting fungal stress. CropVoice delivers Disease Alerts and scouting reports to farmers through text, email, and John Deere Operations Center integration. The company is developing additional seed products including InnerCorn, and offers the InnerCircle farmer community for early access and product feedback. The technology enables earlier disease detection (4-6 weeks before visible symptoms) to optimize fungicide applications and reduce chemical use.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- CropVoice: InnerPlant's groundbreaking insights platform that combines data from a network of sentinel plots featuring InnerSoy soybeans engineered to signal when stressed. Takes the guesswork out of soybean fungicide decisions by sending alerts when disease is confirmed near specific fields.
- InnerSoy
- InnerCircle
- InnerTomato
Products and services
- CropVoice CropVoice is a subscription insights platform that monitors a network of genetically engineered InnerSoy sensor plots, validates detected disease against laboratory, scouting, weather, and modeling data, and delivers disease alerts and 'spray/don't spray' recommendations to soybean farmers via text message, email, or John Deere Operations Center, weeks before symptoms become visible.
- InnerSoy Biosensor Trait (Licensed to Seed Companies) InnerSoy is InnerPlant's first-of-its-kind genetically engineered soybean trait that emits optical fluorescent signals when its immune system detects fungal pathogens such as white mold or frogeye leaf spot. The trait is licensed to seed companies for embedding into commercial seed lines, with InnerPlant earning royalty revenue per acre when deployed at scale.
- InnerTomato InnerTomato is InnerPlant's living sensor plant for tomatoes that emits fluorescent signals when stressed, serving as the company's first commercial demonstration of the fluorescence technology platform.
Quantifiable outcome
- 4-6 weeks earlier disease detection compared to traditional scouting methods
- +4 more outcomes
Companies that use InnerPlant
Customer profileNamed customers4 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
InnerPlant technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration2 records
AI capability5 records
Feature5 records
InnerPlant partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- CHScoreMajor agronomic provider partnering with InnerPlant for commercial CropVoice deployment. CHS is one of the largest agricultural cooperatives in the U.S., providing crop inputs and agronomic services to farmers across the Midwest.
- SunAgcoreAgronomic service provider partnering for commercial CropVoice deployment as part of InnerPlant's expansion across Midwestern states. SunAg provides crop protection and agronomic services to farmers.
- Cooperative Producers Inc. (CPI)coreNebraska farmer-owned cooperative with 30+ retail locations partnering to establish CropVoice demonstration fields and provide CPI's farmer customers access to the disease alert network. CPI soybean growers will be able to enroll in CropVoice coverage starting 2026.
- GROWMARKcoreLaunched Sentinel Project featuring soybean engineered to signal optically when stressed. GROWMARK is a major agricultural cooperative providing crop inputs and services to farmers. Partnership established InnerSoy demonstration plots throughout the Midwest.
- SyngentacoreAnnounced partnership alongside John Deere to develop integrated precision platform to fight fungus in soybeans. Collaboration links InnerPlant's plant signaling technology with Syngenta's crop protection treatments delivered via See & Spray technology, creating an integrated disease management solution.
- MertecminorPartnership to develop crops that communicate biological stresses weeks before problems become visible to farmers. Mertec is a seed technology company supporting InnerPlant's trait development and commercialization efforts.
Scale indicators8 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights6 records
InnerPlant competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Farmers Edge: Farmers Edge is a precision agriculture and digital agronomy platform offering field-level data, weather, and crop intelligence to large commercial growers. Comparable as a subscription-based digital farming service targeting large-acreage row-crop producers with disease and yield-relevant insights.
- Taranis: Taranis is a precision agriculture intelligence platform using aerial imagery and AI to detect crop threats including disease, pests, and nutrient issues at the field level. Directly comparable to InnerPlant as a digital crop-scouting and disease-detection alternative for row-crop farmers, though InnerPlant's biosensor approach differentiates on lead time.
- Semios: Semios provides IoT-based precision crop management including pest, disease, and frost monitoring using in-field sensors and predictive models for orchards and row crops. Comparable as a data-driven crop disease alert platform targeting commercial growers, with similar subscription economics.
- Plantix: Plantix is an AI-powered mobile plant disease diagnostics platform using image recognition to identify crop diseases and nutrient deficiencies for farmers globally. Comparable as a digital crop-disease detection alternative, with a different (image/AI vs. biosensor) detection modality.
Broad incumbents
- Climate FieldView (Bayer): Climate FieldView, Bayer's flagship digital agriculture platform, offers field-level data collection, satellite imagery, and agronomic recommendations across hundreds of millions of acres. A broad incumbent in the same digital/precision ag category where InnerPlant operates, with deeper distribution but less specialized early-disease detection capability.
- Indigo Ag: Indigo Ag is a large agtech company combining microbial seed treatments, digital agronomy, and grain marketing for row-crop farmers. Comparable as a science-led agtech platform serving soybean and corn growers, with overlap on the digital agronomy side though a different core technology focus.
- Granular (Corteva): Granular is a farm management software platform (owned by Corteva) providing operational, financial, and agronomic insights to large commercial farms. Comparable as a digital farm management platform used by enterprise row-crop operators, overlapping with CropVoice's FMIS-like functionality.
Emerging players
- Pivot Bio: Pivot Bio develops microbial nitrogen-fixing crop nutrition products sold through agricultural retailers to row-crop farmers. Comparable as a science-driven agtech company selling biological input solutions through the same CropLife 100 retail channel that InnerPlant leverages for CropVoice distribution.
- Sound Agriculture: Sound Agriculture develops on-demand crop nutrition and stress-mitigation biological products for row crops, sold through ag retailers. Comparable as a science-driven agtech company addressing crop yield protection through biological means, sharing InnerPlant's retailer-led go-to-market and sustainability positioning.
Others
- Pairwise: Pairwise uses gene editing (CRISPR) to develop novel crop traits in fruits, vegetables, and row crops. Comparable as a plant genetics platform company applying advanced breeding technologies to crops, sharing InnerPlant's approach of engineering plant-level traits, though focused on different crops and end markets.
Market position
Strengths1 record
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks4 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
InnerPlant social profiles
Digital presenceInnerPlant compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance2 records
InnerPlant financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
InnerPlant leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles7 records
InnerPlant funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds8 records
Investors15 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
InnerPlant M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about InnerPlant
What does InnerPlant do?
InnerPlant develops genetically engineered Living Sensor plants (InnerSoy soybeans) that emit optical fluorescent signals when their immune systems detect fungal pathogens, and operates the CropVoice insights platform that converts these signals into disease alerts and 'spray/don't spray' recommendations for soybean farmers. The company licenses its biosensor trait technology to seed companies and distributes CropVoice through agricultural retailers and the John Deere Operations Center.
Is InnerPlant a public or private company?
InnerPlant is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was InnerPlant founded?
InnerPlant was founded in 2018. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is InnerPlant based?
InnerPlant is headquartered in Davis, United States, in the North America region.
How does InnerPlant make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. CropVoice Subscription Service is the primary driver. The others are seed Technology Licensing, signal and Data Monetization and fungicide Application Optimization.
Who are InnerPlant's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Farmers Edge, Taranis, Semios and Plantix. Broad incumbents are Climate FieldView (Bayer), Indigo Ag and Granular (Corteva). Emerging players are Pivot Bio and Sound Agriculture. Pairwise is listed as an others.
Does InnerPlant have an API?
No public API is recorded for InnerPlant.
What industry is InnerPlant in?
InnerPlant's product category is Agricultural Biotechnology / Precision Agriculture Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is AFAGALAI, Crop Scouting & Pest/Disease Detection (Digital Scouting, Computer Vision, Alerts), with a secondary code of AFAGALAB, Precision Sensing & Monitoring (Soil/Weather Stations, In-Field Sensors, IoT). Its NAICS code is 111110 and its SIC code is 700.