Kenya's Amini Secures $4 Million in Seed Funding for Environmental Data Tech

Kenyan climate-tech startup, Amini, has successfully raised $4 million in a seed funding round, with leading investments from Salesforce Ventures and the Female Founders Fund.

Other contributors to the funding include Climate-tech VC Satgana, Pale Blue Dot, and Superorganism, the latter two having previously supported Amini in its $2 million pre-seed round earlier this year.

Amini specializes in addressing the environmental data gap in Africa by utilizing satellite data and integrating it with various datasets, such as sensor data, research findings, and ground truthing.

The platform offers insights into biodiversity, soil and crop health, and tracks farming progress and practices, including regenerative actions like water and fertilizer use.

The startup emphasizes the creation of real-time monitoring tools and machine learning models for applications such as flood detection.

Founder and CEO Kate Kallot highlights Amini's use of artificial intelligence and space technologies to make environmental data easily accessible, fostering transparency and informed decision-making in supply chains.

Kallot envisions the platform holding brands accountable and enabling them to demonstrate true sustainability with verifiable data.

Amini's initial clients include enterprises in agriculture and insurance, with a focus on expanding its services to food and beverage companies and consumer packaged goods producers aiming to transform their supply chains sustainably.

This move aligns with new U.S. and European regulations compelling corporations to disclose climate risks in their supply chains.

Kallot sees Amini's role in enhancing transparency and data access as a unique opportunity to positively impact farmers and transform global food systems.

She emphasizes the importance of empowering farmers through data access, leading to increased trust and investment.

Amini's platform, capable of providing historical data spanning up to 20 years, has limitless use cases.

Kallot expresses the company's aspiration to evolve into a platform play, providing tools for developers to create innovative solutions for their communities.

Claudine Emeott, VP of Salesforce Ventures Impact Fund, praises Amini as a trailblazing company in artificial intelligence innovation and climate technology.

Emeott believes that Amini's cutting-edge technology is positioned to redefine industries and drive transformative change, expressing confidence in the company's exceptional growth potential.

Annie Njanja / TechCrunch