Verdi raises $6.5M to bring automation to aging farm infrastructure

VANCOUVER, BC, May 15, 2025 /PRNewswire/ - Verdi, the company making irrigation automation accessible to every farm, today announced it has raised $6.5 million CAD ($4.7 million USD) in its latest oversubscribed seed round, bringing total funding to $9.5 million. The round was led by SVG Ventures, with participation from NEC X, Ponderosa Ventures (a member of Galvanize Climate Solutions' platform), Elemental Impact, GenomeBC, One Small Planet, Waterpoint Lane, Dangerous Ventures, VentureUs, Echo River Capital, Cyan Ventures, Jetstream, and Baker Hall Capital.

The funding follows a breakout year for Verdi, which now powers irrigation automation for some of the world's largest food and beverage brands on more than 5,000 acres of farmland in North America. Agriculture producers have been drawn to its ability to retrofit to existing infrastructure and deliver immediate results. In 2024 alone, Verdi saved customers over $1M in irrigation labor costs while saving them over 100 million liters of water.

"Our mission is to overcome the traditional adoption barriers that have prevented farmers from scaling irrigation automation, and in turn allow them to increase farm efficiency and resilience," said Arthur Chen, CEO and Co-founder of Verdi. "This round fuels our ability to scale rapidly and continue delivering impact where it matters most – on the farm."

Traditionally, automating irrigation required costly and complex infrastructure upgrades, limiting widespread adoption. Verdi's patented smart devices retrofit intelligence onto existing irrigation infrastructure, eliminating the need for disruptive rollouts. Its technology also enables advanced capabilities such as remote leak detection and row-level irrigation control.

Farms using Verdi have seen up to 90% labor savings, 70% water savings, and 20% yield improvements, while reducing automation costs by an order of magnitude. This accessible approach has fueled Verdi's growth across the US and Canada, more than doubling its team in the past year to 24 experts in agronomy, hardware, and AI-driven software.

"We invested in Verdi because they're solving one of agriculture's biggest challenges – climate resilience – through a solution that is not only innovative but also practical and scalable," said John Hartnett, CEO of SVG Ventures. "Their ability to integrate with existing farm infrastructure makes their platform a game-changer for growers looking to stay competitive in a changing world."

With this new investment, Verdi will continue expanding into new regions, advancing its AI-powered platform, and deepening its relationships with major agribusinesses to drive automation at scale and build a more climate-resilient food system.

About Verdi
Verdi is making modern automation tools accessible to every farm on the planet. Its patented smart devices retrofit existing farm infrastructure to automate everyday tasks such as irrigation and maintenance, enabling farmers to save labor, reduce inputs, and increase yields. Verdi is trusted by the world's largest food producers and is helping build the infrastructure for climate-resilient agriculture.

About the SVG Ventures Pioneer Fund
The Pioneer Fund is SVG Ventures' third fund, focused on supporting global agrifood startups developing innovative and sustainable technologies.

SVG Ventures | THRIVE is the leading global agrifood investment and innovation platform headquartered in Silicon Valley, and comprised of top agriculture, food & technology corporations, universities, and investors. With a community of over 8,000 startups from over 100 countries, the THRIVE platform invests, accelerates, and creates unparalleled access for entrepreneurs to scale globally to solve the biggest challenges facing the food and agriculture industries. Learn more at thriveagrifood.com.

Media Contacts
Verdi:
Graham Buksa, Head of Marketing
[email protected]
www.verdiag.com

SVG Ventures I THRIVE:
Helen Hartnett, COO
[email protected]
www.thriveagrifood.com

SOURCE Verdi