Events

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – Research Park’s 10th Annual AgTech Summit on Thursday, March 6, 2025 fostered conversations surrounding the most pressing AgTech trends, including fintech, computing, and more. Moderators and panelists represented a wide spectrum of AgTech, including leaders from the State of Illinois, the agtech industry, startups, and more.  A major highlight of the Summit was the inaugural Startup World Cup Agriculture & Food Regional. This event brought together 10 innovative startups from seven states for a chance to win the Startup World Cup finale in October. Keep reading for a recap of the AgTech Summit. The event kicked off with opening remarks from our hosts and community leaders. Laura Appenzeller, the Executive Director of the University of Illinois Research Park and Assistant Vice Chancellor for Research and Innovation at the University of Illinois opened the day by highlighting Champaign-Urbana’s role as the heart of agriculture land and recognizing the history of the AgTech Summit. Then, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Chancellor Robert J. Jones spoke about the importance of radical collaborations in agriculture for the U. of I. The day’s first panel focused on The Circular Bioeconomy: Bioprocessing in all its Applications. Kim Kidwell, Associate Chancellor for Strategic Partnerships and Initiatives at the University of Illinois, moderated this discussion, featuring Bühler Group Director of Innovation Thierry Duvanel, L’Oréal Chief Open Innovation/Open Excellence Officer Mohamed Kanji, and Black & Veatch Solutions Manager Jeremy Owen. After The Circular Bioeconomy, the first fireside chat started, spotlighting ADM‘s Chief Commercial Officer of Precision Fermentation, Allyson Fish. Fish sat down with moderator Beth Conerty, the Regional Innovation Officer at IBRL and iFAB.  The program then shifted to the presentation of the Edwin Moore Family Agriculture Innovation Prize, which recognizes a University of Illinois entrepreneur focused on agricultural innovations. This year’s winner was Boston Bioprocess, an EnterpriseWorks startup that offers full-suite fermentation and downstream processing services at benchtop and pilot-scale. “It’s been a real pleasure to see them take over one lab after the next at the incubator, and one hire after the next, building an amazing team and startup company that is thriving,” said Laura Appenzeller. https://youtu.be/PRpUj_62EkE?si=oeid3sgPS7Gycbqp The second panel, The Intersection of AgTech & FinTech was moderated by John Reid, the Executive Director at the Center for Digital Agriculture. The panel covered the intersection between finance and agriculture, featuring HarvestIQ Vice President of Product Strategy Eric Barnard, Farmland Stock Exchange Co-founder and CEO Brian Kearney, Compeer Financial Director of New Markets Mary Morgan and CNH Industrial CX Business Product Owner Jennifer Whisman. After a break for lunch and a University department showcase, Research Park Talent Manager Bryan Goode and the AGCO Acceleration Center’s Business Site Lead Karandeep Singh shared how Research Park participated in HackIllinois‘ annual Hackathon on February 28 to March 2.  That was followed by a fireside chat with Kristin Richards, the Director of the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity. Laura Appenzeller moderated this discussion about AgTech and government policy, business, and more.  The final panel of the day discussed Pushing the Frontiers of Computing to Solve Grand Challenges in Agriculture. Bayer‘s Head of Data, Systems, and Intelligence for Plant Biotech Mark Moran moderated panelists in a discussion of how computing is applied in the AgTech industry. Panelists included Intersect Illinois SVP, Chief Quantum Officer Preeti Chalsani, John Deere Senior Manager of Data Science Jarai Carter, ACES Gardner Associate Professor of Agricultural Policy Jonathan Coppess and Chicago Biomedical Consortium Executive Director Michelle Hoffmann. Wolf Creek Farm was awarded the 2025 Glen “GB” Brandt Prize for Ag Entrepreneurism. “[Wolf Creek Farm] has taken innovation to heart,” said Alex Lovdahl, award presenter and Director of Insights and Analytics at BRANDT. The farm “seamlessly integrates sustainable growing methods, self-designed equipment and precision agriculture to maximize efficiency and quality.” This award presentation was followed by Startup World Cup‘s Agriculture & Food Regional competition, featuring pitches from the following startups:  AGTECHLOGIC INC. — Developed Agtellio, an AI solution helping farms reduce chemical use by up to 90%, lowering costs and improving yields while providing actionable insights for asset efficiency. Cattle Care — Uses computer vision with existing security cameras to measure employee efficiency on dairy farms, enabling performance-based compensation and improving workforce productivity. EarthSense, Inc. — Creates AI-powered farming robots targeting labor shortages and rising costs, initially serving oil palm companies in Asia that manage over 10 million hectares. Re-Nuble — Converts vegetative food byproducts into biological fertilizers and peat replacements, helping commercial farms reduce costs and mitigate pathogen risks through lab-tested products. Vivid Machines — Offers tractor-mountable AI cameras providing real-time, per-plant fruit predictions, enabling precise tree-level decisions to increase fruit size and reduce labor costs. Earnest Agriculture — Produces Prairie Power, a probiotic seed coating that improves soil health, delivering a proven 6 percent yield increase for row crop farmers with measurable ROI. Oaken — Building asset management software to streamline farmland management and financing, automating payments, lease management, and relationship tracking. Good Agriculture — Provides AI-powered farm business management that automates back-office tasks, saving farmers 5-10 hours weekly while improving profitability. Integrated Dynamics, Inc. — Developing high-selectivity waste-to-value technology using synthetic biology and high-temperature microbes to convert organic waste into commodity chemicals. UfarmX — Africa’s largest farmer data and procurement platform connecting smallholder farmers to agribusinesses and financial institutions, eliminating middlemen and enhancing supply chain efficiency. Congratulations to Champaign-based startup EarthSense for winning the 2025 Startup World Cup Agriculture and Food Regional.  The final fireside chat featured Chris Harbourt, CEO of Frenzy Ag, and Ken Paige, Founder, Chief Science Officer and President of Frenzy Ag. The discussion was moderated by EnterpriseWorks Director of Entrepreneurship Gerald Wilson. The 2025 AgTech Innovation Summit concluded with a Tech Showcase of local startups and area innovators during a networking reception. The AgTech Summit is free thanks to its generous sponsors John Deere, AGCO, the College of ACES, Frenzy Ag, Buhler Group, Cooley, GDM, Intersect Illinois, the Illinois/Champaign County Farm Bureau, the University of Illinois Foundation, Pixo and the NSF I-Corps Hub. The AgTech Summit is hosted by the University of Illinois Research Park with support from the University of Illinois, the College of ACES, and the Office of Corporate Relations.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (February 26, 2025) – The 10th Annual AgTech Innovation Summit will take place at the University of Illinois Research Park on Thursday, March 6 at the Illinois Conference Center. The AgTech Summit explores how technology solutions are addressing some of the most significant challenges facing agriculture today, at one of the nation’s premier agtech hubs. This event brings together entrepreneurs, corporate innovators, investors, growers/producers, academics, and more for keynote speakers, panels, award presentations, networking, and more that advance the agtech sector. “Agtech is a very broad sector, one that continues to change and scale in its size and scope,” said Laura Appenzeller, Executive Director, Research Park. “The AgTech Summit is emblematic of that continuous evolution over the past decade. Once a regional event, it now attracts a global audience which recognizes Champaign as an agtech destination.” For the first time, the AgTech Summit will feature a startup pitch competition. The Startup World Cup Agriculture and Food Regional will feature 10 startup finalists who will showcase their ideas in front of a judging panel of investors. The winner will receive travel expenses to compete for a $1 million investment at the Startup World Cup Grand Finale in October. The event will feature fireside chats with Allyson Fish, President, Chief Commercial Officer, Precision Fermentation at ADM; Kristin Richards, Director of Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity; and Chris Harbourt and Ken Paige, co-founders of Research Park startup Frenzy Ag. Panel topics include the Circular Bioeconomy: Bioprocessing in all its Applications; the Intersection of AgTech and FinTech; and Pushing the Frontiers of Computing to Solve Grand Challenges in Agriculture. A full agenda can be found online here. The AgTech Summit is hosted by the University of Illinois Research Park and is sponsored by John Deere, AGCO, Frenzy Ag, Illinois College of ACES, Buhler Group, Cooley, GDM, the Illinois/Champaign County Farm Bureau, Intersect Illinois, Pixo, the University of Illinois Foundation, NSF I-Corps Hub: Great Lakes Region, and Serra Ventures. For more information about the AgTech Summit and press opportunities, contact Laura Bleill.

CHAMPAIGN —  Registration is now open for the 10th Annual AgTech Innovation Summit, taking place Thursday, March 6, 2025. The event will highlight how agtech intersects with other industry sectors of strategic importance to our state and region: biomanufacturing, fintech, renewable energy, and the longer term promise of quantum computing. NEW this year — we will welcome agtech startups for a pitch competition — stay tuned as we roll out more information. The summit is part of Champaign-Urbana AgTech Week, which celebrates Champaign-Urbana’s robust AgTech ecosystem, including the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Parkland College, corporate innovation centers, startups, state-of-the-art facilities, student organizations, local ag companies, and the iFAB Tech Hub. Additional AgTech Week events include, the Center for Digital Agriculture Conference, Precision Fermentation Workshops at the Integrated Bioprocessing Research Laboratory, and more. Participants in the 10th Annual AgTech Summit will have the opportunity to engage in dynamic panels, keynote presentations, and networking sessions focused on agtech’s current landscape and future developments. True to our land grant mission, this event is free thanks to our generous sponsors. Nominations are also open for the Glen “GB” Brandt Prize, to be awarded at the summit. This $10,000 cash prize honors GB Brandt’s legacy by recognizing individuals who demonstrate entrepreneurial spirit and advance innovation in business practices, crop-growing processes, or product usage. A more detailed agenda for the event will be coming soon. Registration is available online here. 

CHAMPAIGN — On Friday, November 15, 2024, CABBI leadership and University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign officials gathered to celebrate the opening of the Plant Biology Innovation Greenhouse at 1902 S Fourth St. in the Research Park. The $252.5 million, U.S. Department of Energy-funded, facility marks a major milestone for the Center for Advanced Bioenergy and Bioproducts Innovation (CABBI) mission to drive scientific discoveries and technologies that support an economically viable and sustainable domestic biofuel and bioproduct industry. “This state-of-the-art facility is a testament to our commitment at this university to advancing research and innovation that addresses grand challenges in our world, sustainable energy solutions being among those,” said John Coleman, Provost and Executive Chancellor for Academic Affairs at U. of. I “This greenhouse will provide researchers with the advanced tools and intellectual environment they need to continue to make valuable advances in their work.” The newly completed greenhouse incorporates energy-efficient design and cutting-edge technology, fostering interdisciplinary collaboration. It includes a solar panel array, a plant phenotyping facility, walk-in growth rooms, and space for future expansion. “We’re really excited about having this stable isotope facility because it allows us to deeply investigate the interactions between plants, microbes, and soil,” said Wendy Yang, Professor of Plant Biology and Geology and CABBI’s Sustainability Theme Leader. The greenhouse will serve as a research hub for faculty and students from the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences, the Grainger College of Engineering and the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. It will also provide undergraduate experiential learning opportunities through CABBI’s Research Internship in Sustainable Bioenergy, RISE. Since its groundbreaking in September 2023, the CABBI greenhouse has been heralded as a game-changer for sustainable bioenergy research in Illinois and beyond. The innovative structure exemplifies the university’s commitment to tackling global challenges through interdisciplinary collaboration and cutting-edge facilities. The event featured remarks by Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs John Coleman, Vice Chancellor for Research and Innovation Susan Martinis, and Research Park Executive Director Laura Appenzeller, along with a ribbon-cutting ceremony to mark the facility’s official opening.