Grit Road Partners, the Nebraska-based venture capital firm supporting agtech advancements in the Midwest, announced its collaboration with DIAL Ventures, a Purdue University-affiliated venture studio centered on the ag and food space. Leaders of both organizations said they see this opportunity as a way to tap into each other’s networks while developing proven solutions to the food supply chain.
Grit Road Co-founder and Managing Partner Mike Jung said his firm will be acting as general partner and managing entity of DIAL Ventures Fund II — which completed its first close.
With partner support, DIAL Ventures seeks to generate both agrifood leaders and startups. It accomplishes this by fostering direct interactions among the university ecosystem, industry stakeholders and cohort members participating in its fellowship program.
DIAL Ventures Managing Director Jarrod Sutton said DIAL Ventures originated in 2020 out of the Purdue Applied Research Institute. PARI’s mission is to apply Purdue University’s academic infrastructure and research capabilities to real-world needs.
The goal of launching DIAL Ventures “was to really help find ways to engage tech entrepreneurs, people who are in fact digital natives and think with a digital-first mindset, and expose them to the agrifood industry by engagement,” Sutton said.
Source: Grit Road Partners to bridge Nebraska agtech scene with Purdue University innovation ecosystem – Silicon Prairie News
