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About Arable
A real-time crop management concept rooted in situational intelligence and facts on the ground.
Our History
A pioneer in decision agriculture, Arable Labs builds affordable tools that help people collect and synthesize site-specific agricultural data. The company’s mission is to achieve global impact by providing the measurements, insights, and predictions that enable growers to recognize and address risk. Through access to ground-truth knowledge, Arable empowers agricultural stakeholders to more effectively manage natural resources and lower food waste throughout the supply chain.
In 2010, Drs. Adam Wolf and Kelly Caylor were each deep into their respective pursuits at Princeton University: circuit boards and databases. Frustrated at how much of Earth science was in "model world" and how little was based in empirical data, together they wanted to bridge the chasm between measurements and models. In 2012, they taught a class together, which brought student Ben Siegfried into their lives. In 2014, the trio founded Arable with the conviction that the reliance of ag-tech on models is useless without real data, and the production of data is pointless without an understanding of modeling.
The Arable team has grown since 2014 to a full-time staff of 25 in two bicoastal offices, with deep experience in crop modeling satellite imaging, and weather forecasting using artificial intelligence and machine-learning techniques. Our customers range across the entire production spectrum in food and ag, from farmers, mid-size consultancies, and universities, to governments/NGOs, major global food brands, agrichemical giants, insurers, lenders, and international communications firms. From the smallest grower to the largest corporations, we feed data to those who feed the world.
Awards & Media
2018 Innovator to Watch
Date: 5/2/2018
Honoring the 2018 Innovators to Watch, Rising Stars in STEM, a group of up to 50 impressive young overachievers and leaders.
Village Capital Agriculture: US 2016 investment award
Date: 3/14/2017
One of two startups peer-selected to receive $100,000 in investment from VilCap Investments and Green Spark Ventures.
THRIVE Accelerator Program 2017
Date: 4/1/2017
One of ten winning companies to receive $50,000 in cash and a program/mentorship and coaching valued at $50,000.
NSF USDA SBIR Phase II: Advanced bioeconomic forecasting enabled by next-generation crop monitoring
Date: 9/29/2017
America’s Seed Fund powered by NSF is a congressionally mandated program that helps startups and small businesses transform their ideas into marketable products and services. Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR).
NSF USDA SBIR Phase I: Advanced bioeconomic forecasting enabled by next-generation crop monitoring
Date: 5/2/2018
America’s Seed Fund powered by NSF is a congressionally mandated program that helps startups and small businesses transform their ideas into marketable products and services. Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR).
Collaborative Research: Extreme Events and Ecological Acclimation: Scaling from Cells to Ecosystems
Date: 6/1/2014
An NSF standard grant for a collaborative study identifying tree traits that contribute to drought vulnerability.
NJ Technology Business Tax Certificate (NOL) Program 2017 participant
Date: 2/8/2018
One of 39 companies approved for the State’s Technology Business Tax Certificate (NOL) Program in 2017. Administered by the New Jersey Economic Development Authority (EDA) and the New Jersey Department of Treasury's Division of Taxation, this competitive program enables eligible technology and biotechnology companies to sell NJ tax losses and/or research and development tax credits to raise cash to finance their growth and operations. The NOL Program offers non-dilutive funding, meaning that entrepreneurs do not have to relinquish a portion of their company in return for funding.
IoT-based precision agriculture reduces the guesswork in farming
Date: 12/16/2016
Farmers make better data-driven decisions with GROWERS soil analysis and customized planting prescriptions.
Smart Farms: Big Data Meets Big Ag
Date: 11/8/2016
Big data in agriculture promises improved efficiency and yields. But the components are not yet a cohesive whole.
2017 Small Business Innovation Awardee, Technology Commercialization
Date: 12/15/2017
Recognizing successful NJSBDC business clients from around the state of New Jersey.
Our Management Team
Jim Ethington
Chief Executive Officer
Prior to joining Arable, Jim spent 10 years at The Climate Corporation where he was VP of Product and grew the company to 50 million paid acres and built a team from 10 to over 600 individuals. Previous to The Climate Corporation, Jim worked at PriceWaterhouseCoopers, where he led several high- profile engagements, including developing innovative financial analysis and fraud detection software products that became core drivers of revenue across PwC's lines of business. Jim has an A.B. in Computer Science and Economics from Duke University.
Adam Wolf
Founder & Chief Scientist
Adam holds a PhD in Biology from Stanford, and later taught at Princeton. He brought his experience in agronomy, hydrology, and plant science to the creation of Arable. During his scientific career, Adam lived and researched in Russia, Africa, Europe, and East Asia, bringing a global perspective on the application of data to solving real-world problems. He believes that given the right tools, people can capably manage our world.
Ron Berg
Chief Operating Officer
Ron has over 25 years experience as a C-Level Executive in the Internet and Life Sciences industries. Early on, Ron spent 7 years with Coopers and Lybrand (now PricewaterhouseCoopers), and for 10 years served as CEO/COO of a contract research organization. An Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year finalist in 2008, and inducted in the NJ Technology Hall of Fame in 2009, he has a BSBA with a major in Accounting from Bucknell University.
Warren Baelen
VP of Software Engineering
Warren is from an entrepreneurial family and has it in his blood. Prior to joining Arable, he began his working life at CIGNA as an intern and worked for Cognos until its acquisition by IBM, primarily in the business intelligence, consolidation, analytics and financial performance management spaces. He plays guitar, speaks conversational Portuguese, and paints watercolors. He received both his BS and MS degrees from Drexel University in Philadelphia, PA.
Jess Bollinger
VP of Strategic Partnerships
Jess works with Arable's growers and partners to reduce supply chain risk and build innovative financial products. She has worked at UNICEF USA; with smallholder farmers in Mayange, Rwanda and Xochimilco, Mexico; on the Hurricane Sandy recovery effort at the NYC Mayor’s Office of Long-Term Planning & Sustainability; and in the private sector. Jess has an MS in Sustainability Management from Columbia University and a BA from Tufts University in International Relations and Spanish.
Ron Butterworth
VP of Hardware Engineering
Ron is a Silicon Valley veteran with over 20 years of product design experience. Prior to Arable, he was a founding member of several startups including Atheer Labs, where, as the VP of Hardware Engineering, he was responsible for the initial architecture and prototyping the world’s first mobile 3D interactive smart glasses. He has also worked at Eva Automation, SunReports, and AlphaSmart. Ron enjoys motorcycling, photography, and spending time with his family.
Jim Cairns
VP of Customer Success
Jim grew up in the citrus groves of Lemon Cove, California, where his family and many of his childhood friends still earn their livelihood. After moving to Silicon Valley and getting his electrical engineering degree from Stanford, he has focused on driving successful customer outcomes at a series of leading technology companies.
Marisa Rowland
VP of Marketing
Marisa Rowland is the VP of Marketing at Arable Labs. Marisa leads software design and strategic UX thinking around natural resource management for optimized decision-making. She previously led UX design and branding at several startups, working at Liveli and Lytics developing web and mobile apps, branding and identity, and marketing strategy. Marisa was a member of the first cohort of Whitespace Design Program and has a BA in Art from Reed College
Danielle Watts
VP of Data Science
Prior to joining Arable, Danielle was a Data Scientist for Edyn, where she developed and parameterized smart water products. She worked as a Postdoctoral Scholar and Lecturer at UC Berkeley in the Geography Department, and received both her PhD & MS in Interdisciplinary Ecology from the University of Florida. She has served in the Peace Corps in Guinea and received her undergraduate degree in Wildlife Ecology at the University of Florida.
Our Investors
Middleland Capital is a private investment firm focused on global early-stage technology opportunities. Leveraging a unique breadth of geographic and industry experience, the firm seeks partnerships with exceptional management teams to commercialize innovative technologies, accelerate growth and build long-term value around the world.
S2G Ventures (Seed 2 Growth) is a multi-stage food and agriculture venture fund investing in entrepreneurs whose products and services meet the shifting demands for healthy and sustainable food.
We are a new type of seed-stage fund. We believe business is now truly global. Exceptional entrepreneurs, that are building strong, category defining companies at highly advantageous valuations – can be found anywhere. We are a team highly experienced in finding such talent and helping our entrepreneurs to develop, grow, network, and scale into other markets throughout the world.
Cantos is a pre-Seed and Seed-stage venture capital firm that invests at the intersection of industry and technology – with a focus on industrial technology (esp. machine intelligence in manufacturing and logistics), decentralized finance (esp. within finance and healthcare), and the near frontier (esp. bio, energy, and orbital).
Village Capital finds, trains, and invests in entrepreneurs solving real-world problems. We build communities around entrepreneurs and their ventures to improve opportunities for growth and success.
THRIVE AgTech’s mission is to connect the expertise of tech companies to on-the-ground knowledge of agricultural companies, the financial backing of investors, and the entrepreneurs solving problems in the AgTech space.
America’s Seed Fund powered by NSF is a congressionally mandated program that helps startups and small businesses transform their ideas into marketable products and services. Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR).