Dean Tilyard

Dean is a Venture Partner for Finistere Ventures in New Zealand, where he specializes in seed-stage agtech companies. Additionally, Dean is Chief Executive of The Factory and Sprout Agritech, a New Zealand start-up advisory and accelerator. Dean has experience with multiple start-ups and technologies and is a founding member of the New Zealand Angel Association where he received the Association’s inaugural Kotahitanga Award. Dean has founded an angel investor network and two seed investment funds. Dean is currently a director of Levno (on farm IoT), Biolumic (UV light treatments) and Invert Robotics (robotic inspection). Dean has a BA(Hons) in Economics and Geography from Otago University.

Additional Finistere Insights

An open letter as Plenty CEO

By Arama Kukutai Dear valued customers, team members and community: Firstly, thank you for welcoming me officially as Plenty’s new CEO! I look forward to this next phase of growth for the company. There is no denying our existing food supply is fragile, strained and unsustainable. Indoor agriculture has long promised a solution to the… Read More ▸

Farm2050: Coalition Names First Five Nutrient Technology Trial Startups

Top Investors and Industry Leaders Validate Promising Soil and Nutrient-Focused Innovations With Global Trials PALO ALTO, CA and Palmerston North, New Zealand – Finistere Ventures  and Innovation Endeavors today revealed the first five companies selected for the Farm2050 Nutrient Technology Trialing Platform, a dual-hemisphere agritech testing and validation platform. The Farm2050 Nutrient Trialing Platform aims… Read More ▸

Hi Fidelity Genetics Announces Study Published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

Hi Fidelity Genetics Announces Study Published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Peer-Reviewed Journal Details How to Dramatically Reduce Row Crop Emissions and Make Farm Management Practices More Sustainable DURHAM, N.C., June 21, 2021 – Hi Fidelity Genetics (HFG), a computational crop breeding company, announced today the publication of a peer-reviewed article titled, “Novel… Read More ▸