Plants can speak using electricity, and one startup is building an AI system to understand what they are saying. Electric Plant has spent the past three years collecting plant data for Bombadil, a large language model designed to interpret electrical signals moving through a plant’s stem.
The goal is direct: give growers details about what plants need, then help them act on those signals. Electric Plant has now raised an $11.2 million seed round to develop the system, while another startup, IMIO, has secured $12 million to create biological products for healthier soil and stronger crop yields.
Bombadil Listens Beneath the Surface
Electric Plant’s technology centers on sensors that measure subtle electrical signals coursing through plants. Those sensors attach to plants using stainless steel screws that penetrate the cambium, the plant tissue beneath the outer layer of the stem.
The hardware is about the size of a regular iPhone folded lengthwise, yet its cost sits far below existing tools. Electric Plant says its sensors cost about tens of dollars, compared with thousands of dollars for current alternatives. That price difference could help place plant monitoring within reach of more growers.
Once a sensor gathers data, it sends the information to a base station through a low-power wireless network. Bombadil interprets the signals in the cloud, and the results then travel back to customers. The system is built to turn hidden electrical activity into information about a plant’s needs.
Justin Mast, co-founder and CEO of Electric Plant, described the company’s approach with a line that captures the system’s role: “We’re listening more than we’re speaking, but listening’s the first step.”
A Model Built Across 125 Plant Species
Bombadil can interpret electrical signals in about 125 different species of plants. Its first hundred-plus species include ferns, redwoods, tomatoes, and dahlias, giving the model a wide range of plant life to study.
Mast said, “This is the most diverse model ever created on biological electrical signals.” That range matters because Electric Plant is not building Bombadil around one crop or a single growing environment. The model’s data covers species that differ in size, structure, and agricultural use.
Electric Plant has not disclosed its initial customers, so the startup’s first commercial deployments remain private. Still, the company has outlined a clear measure for the system’s value: Mast claims it can boost yields while reducing water use by 20% or more.
Those targets connect the model’s unusual input to familiar farm pressures. If growers can receive information about what plants need, the system could guide decisions about water and crop production. Bombadil’s work begins with electrical signals, but its intended results reach into everyday agricultural operations.
Two Funding Bets on Better Crop Biology
Electric Plant’s $11.2 million seed round was led by Onto Ventures and Climactic, with participation from Ponderosa, Endeavor Catalyst, Ludlow, Michigan Rise, The Fund, Schox VC, and Dug Song. The funding supports a company that has already spent three years building the data foundation for its model.
IMIO is taking a different route into agricultural technology. The startup raised $12 million in seed funding, with Soffinova as the lead investor, to develop freeze-dried biologicals that can boost soil health and crop yields.
IMIO’s work arrives as farmers seek reliable alternatives to nitrogen fertilizers, which have soared in price. While Electric Plant focuses on listening to electrical signals inside plants, IMIO focuses on biological products that can improve the soil supporting those plants. Together, the startups represent two distinct approaches to the same agricultural challenge: producing stronger crops with better tools.
The contrast also shows how agricultural technology is expanding beyond machines and traditional inputs. Electric Plant is turning plant signals into data for a large language model, while IMIO is developing freeze-dried biologicals for the soil. One startup listens to the plant; the other works on the ground beneath it.
Electric Plant’s next chapter will test whether Bombadil’s understanding of 125 plant species can deliver practical value for growers. The sensors, wireless network, cloud model, and customer results form a complete chain from plant signal to agricultural decision. If that chain performs as Mast claims, plant communication could become a new source of intelligence for farms.
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