Esther Githinji
- @EstherGithinji
- | She/Her
About Gro
Curated by human intelligence and scaled through artificial intelligence, Gro Intelligence is built to illuminate the interrelationships between the Earth's ecology and the global economy, so you can develop a holistic understanding of how your end-to-end business is impacted - and act on these insights. It was founded in 2014 in Nairobi by CEO, Ethiopian entrepreneur Sara Menker and now has offices across New York and Singapore.
Gro Intelligence has raised more than $125 million in funding, the largest yet raised within the African tech startup ecosystem by an African-led tech startup. In 2021, Gro was listed as one of TIME's 100 Most Influential Companies.
World's most powerful data and analytics platform for agriculture, climate, and the economy
The team at Gro has built a platform bringing together live, interconnected data with machine learning so companies, financial institutions, and governments can develop a holistic understanding of how their business is impacted - and act on these insights. Gro's data and analytics examine the intersectional effects of supply, climate, demand, and price to enable their customers to make decisions with confidence - and “see around the corner.”
The four pillars of this platform that set it apart:
Global Data
Vast amounts of agricultural, climate, and economic data sorted according to our proprietary ontology.
Domain Expertise
Curated by human intelligence. Domain experts who work closely with engineers and data scientists.
Artificial Intelligence
Unparalleled AI and predictive modeling capabilities with a 7-year track record and high accuracy.
Transparency
Transparency and neutrality across all models and methodologies.
How it all started
Watch Sara Menker's 2017 TED Talk on how the journey to figuring out how the global value chain of agriculture works led her to startling discoveries that have influenced Gro Intelligence's work.
We could have a tipping point in global food and agriculture if surging demand surpasses the agricultural system's structural capacity to produce food...people could starve and governments may fall. - Sara Menker
Sara Menker quit a career in commodities trading to figure out how the global value chain of agriculture works. Her discoveries have led to some startling predictions: "We could have a tipping point in global food and agriculture if surging demand surpasses the agricultural system's structural capacity to produce food," she says. "People could starve and governments may fall." Menker's models predict that this scenario could happen in a decade -- that the world could be short 214 trillion calories per year by 2027. She offers a vision of this impossible world as well as some steps we can take today to avoid it.
How Gro was built
Listen in on a conversation between Guy Raz on HIBT Lab and Sara Menker as she details the evolution and growth of Gro.
Subscribe for the latest insights in the world of climate and agriculture in Gro's Newsletter to:
See how:
- Gro yield models predict corn and soy yields 6 months before the USDA
- Drought can be incorporated into your short- and long-term strategies
- Current market-moving events could impact your business objectives
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