FarmLogs raises $22 million to help farmers improve crop yield with big data

Data-focused crop-management startup FarmLogs has raised $22 million in a funding round led by Naspers Ventures, the VC arm of South African media giant Naspers, with participation from existing investors Drive Capital, Huron River Ventures, Hyde Park Venture Partners, SV Angel, and Y Combinator president Sam Altman. Founded out of Ann Arbor, Michigan in 2011, Y Combinator alumnus FarmLogs uses data science and machine learning smarts to help farmers garner insights into what's happening in their fields in order to maximize their yield, reduce waste, and increase profitability. The platform monitors metrics such as crop health, rainfall, nitrogen levels, and more, while enabling users to record and share scouting notes with photos from specific locations in a field. Farmers can access this data through native mobile apps for Android and iOS. Today, FarmLogs claims its platform is used by more than a third of row crop farms in the U.S. Prior to now, FarmLogs had raised $15 million, and with its latest cash injection the company says it plans to expand its team and expedite product development.