Imagen vía: ReForest Latam
Argentine startup ReForest Latam, a climate and biodiversity solutions company, closed a US$1 million pre-seed funding round in a bid to restore ecosystems on a large scale, combining advanced technology and innovative strategies to regenerate nature.
The funding round was led by iThink VC and also involved Innventure AgriFood Tech, Antom, BP Soluciones Electricas Confiables, Amauta Inversiones Financieras and several angel investors.
The capital raised will be used to scale the company’s technology as well as to run key pilots and strengthen the team. The company will distribute the money raised as follows:
- 40%: Technology development (from TRL6 to TRL9), biotech capsule improvements and drone dispersal system optimization.
- 30%: Execution of large-scale restoration pilots in Argentina, Brazil and Bolivia.
- 20%: Expansion of the technical and operational team.
- 10%: Commercial strategy, international presence and go-to-market.
“We just closed our first round after almost two and a half years of bootstrapping, and we are already gaining traction with 14 projects in Argentina, Bolivia and Brazil,” Damian Rivadeneira, CEO and Founder of ReForest Latam, told Contxto.
In almost three years of operation, the company has activated natural regeneration processes in areas degraded by fires, extensive cattle ranching, and selective cutting. Its proprietary technology allowed it to carry out the projects while reducing implementation times by 95% and costs per hectare by up to 75%.
Founded in 2023 in Tucumán, Argentina by Damián Rivadeneira and Paula Gianserra, ReForest Latam integrates biotechnology, drones and artificial intelligence to optimize reforestation.
The technology improves seed germination and promotes vigorous tree growth, even in hostile environments. The company’s AI-powered ecosystem analysis platform assesses soil conditions to determine the most suitable species for each site.
“We came from years of working on restoration projects using traditional methods, and we clearly saw something that many organizations already sensed: those solutions don’t scale. That frustration, combined with the environmental urgency we are experiencing as a generation, led us to create a technological alternative to change the rules of the game,” added Rivadeneira.
The main challenge these entrepreneurs have had to face is to validate a complex technology in real field conditions, in remote geographies and under climatic pressure. Achieving this required the integration of very different disciplines: biotechnology, forest engineering, biology, data science and logistics. And at the same time, convincing the investor ecosystem that an early-stage startup could lead this transformation.
“The success of this round and the international interest show us that this hurdle is behind us,” said the CEO proudly.
By 2029, ReForest Latam has the clear objective of being a leading technology restoration platform in Latin America, operating projects in at least 7 countries and staking an active presence in the global carbon market.
“We expect to be executing projects of thousands of hectares annually, with sustainable revenues and partnerships with climate funds, multilateral banks and corporations committed to regeneration” concluded Damian.
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