Participated · Seed · Sep 2022

Puna Bio develops biological inputs based on extremophiles isolated from La Puna to enhance nutrient uptake, stress tolerance and crop quality. Its non-GMO seed treatments aim to boost yields, reduce fertilizer use and enable cultivation on degraded soils. The company currently commercializes two products—Kunza (soybeans, cotton, beans) and Kanzama (wheat, barley)—deployed on over 800,000 acres in three commercial seasons. Puna Bio received initial funding in 2022 led by At One Ventures, which enabled establishment of its first laboratory and core team. The recent investment led by Corteva Catalyst will support deeper innovation and development of new products. Puna Bio plans to expand its business into the United States, Brazil, and Paraguay and has made progress on regulatory approvals and commercialization in those markets. Puna Bio builds a library of extremophile bacteria, archaea, fungi and yeasts and sells patented methods for cultivating, combining and applying those strains to seed stock. The company isolates organisms from extreme environments (e.g., high-altitude Andes, Great Salt Lake) under bioprospection partnerships and Nagoya Protocol agreements with host institutions. Their products are designed to work with farmers' existing seed‑treatment workflows and to act near plant roots without displacing native soil microbiomes, with some trials showing synergies with common beneficial microbes. Puna emphasizes using naturally high-performing organisms rather than genetically modifying microbes, claiming amplified nutrient‑uptake activity from gene copy number or novel biosynthetic pathways. The team includes co‑founders Franco Martínez Levis (CEO) and Elisa Violeta Bertini — the latter with extensive extremophile field experience and more than 150 published papers — plus Carolina Belfiore and María Eugenia Farías. Financially, the company recently closed a $3.7 million seed round to fund product launches, R&D and new facilities.

Participated · Series A · Mar 2022

Stämm develops a next-generation biomanufacturing platform that pairs naturally occurring microfluidics and laminar flow with 3D-printing to enable continuous and autonomous mammalian cell production. Led by CEO Yuyo Llamazares and based in Buenos Aires, the company employs a team of more than 100 people. Following its Series A, Stämm plans to prepare for commercialization and to further develop biopharma partnerships into pilot scale. The company will also use funds to enhance operational infrastructure, continue growing its team, and deepen its international presence. The article does not report revenue or other operating metrics.

Participated · Series A · Feb 2022

Stämm Biotech is building a desktop-sized bioreactor that 3D prints a dense network of microchannels to move cells through nutrients and oxygen, replacing tanks, stirrers and tubing. Its system is designed with a software component that configures channel designs and has been described as a “CDMO on the cloud.” The company says its approach can reduce the size of a biomanufacturing facility by two orders of magnitude and currently achieves outputs of about 30 liters, with a claimed potential to scale to roughly 5,000 liters. Commercialization is still early: Stämm is working with one European biopharma on biosimilars and has five potential partners in the pipeline, and it plans to move to pilot scale in 2022. Financially, Stämm closed a $17M Series A and has raised $20M in total (including prior seed and pre-seed rounds). The company is refining its microfluidic bioreactors and control tools, exploring business models, and plans to double headcount and expand internationally.

Participated · Series A · Jun 2021

Beeflow develops proprietary, plant-based nutritional and behavioral technologies that make bees healthier and improve pollination performance. Its core products include a feed shown in research to reduce bee mortality by up to 70% and enable bees to fly up to seven times more in cold weather, and ToBEE, a product that trains bees to target specific crops. Combined, Beeflow’s products have increased crop yields for farmers by as much as 90%. The company both loans its own bee colonies to farmers and partners with beekeepers, who receive the technology at no cost in exchange for rights to their farmer relationships. Beeflow was founded by Matias Viel and is mostly operational in Latin America and the U.S. West Coast, with plans to expand to the U.S. East Coast and Mexico. The startup closed an $8.3 million Series A and says its greatest challenge is operational execution and the need to scale its team and operations.