Biotech Startup Robigo Closes Series A Funding Round

The round also saw participation from Illumina Ventures, SVG Thrive, Congruent Ventures, and Endeavor8.

The company plans to use the funding to accelerate the commercial launch of its engineered microbial biopesticides for fungal diseases in soybeans and specialty crops in the United States. The company will also expand its pipeline to target additional soil-borne pathogens in broadacre crops.

What is Robigo?

Robigo develops biological solutions designed to protect crops from pests and diseases.

The company's technology uses synthetic biology to engineer living microbes and give them specific traits for controlling crop diseases.

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Its ARGO™ platform uses computationally designed active ingredients and is designed to create new ways of targeting pathogens by silencing their essential genes.

Robigo says its platform can shorten the development process from computational design through microbe engineering, lead validation and field testing to less than 20 months, compared with the industry norm of three to five years.

The company's engineered microbes are applied as a one-time treatment and continuously produce and deliver the active ingredients where they are needed on the plant. Robigo says this approach is designed to provide season-long protection without requiring changes to existing grower practices.

How Much Funding Has Robigo Raised?

Robigo has raised an undisclosed amount in its Series A funding round.

The round was led by Leaps by Bayer, with participation from Illumina Ventures, SVG Thrive, Congruent Ventures and Endeavor8.

The source does not provide details of Robigo's previous funding rounds or total funding raised.

Who Invested in Robigo’s Series A Round?

Leaps by Bayer led Robigo's Series A funding round.

Illumina Ventures, SVG Thrive, Congruent Ventures and Endeavor8 also participated in the round.

Why the Funding Matters

Robigo will use the new funding to accelerate the commercial launch of its engineered microbial biopesticides in the United States.

The initial focus is on fungal diseases affecting soybeans and specialty crops.

The company also plans to expand its pipeline to address additional soil-borne pathogens affecting broadacre crops.

Who founded Robigo?

Robigo was founded in 2021 by Andee Wallace.

The company is headquartered in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Leadership Comments

“At Robigo, we believe in building on nature’s foundation to engineer biological products that match or exceed the performance of today's chemistries. Growers shouldn't have to choose between a product that works and one that's affordable or sustainable," said Dr. Andee Wallace, Founder & CEO of Robigo.

"The scalability of the ARGO™ platform is what sets Robigo apart,” said Dr. Juergen Eckhardt, EVP and Head of Leaps by Bayer. “They are not just developing a single product but rather building an engine that can rapidly address diverse soil-borne pathogens across broadacre crops.

Market and Business Growth

Robigo is developing biological crop protection solutions for diseases affecting major crops.

The company is initially targeting Sudden Death Syndrome (SDS) in soybeans and Fusarium wilt affecting lettuce and berry growers.

The source estimates that soybean SDS causes $200 million to $500 million in annual losses for U.S. soybean farmers.

Robigo's ARGO™ platform is designed to shorten development timelines to under 20 months, from computational design through field testing.

What Happens Next?

Robigo plans to accelerate the commercial launch of its microbial biopesticides for soybean and specialty crop diseases in the United States.

The company will also expand its pipeline to target additional soil-borne pathogens in broadacre crops.

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