Bindwell, an AI agriculture startup founded by Tyler Rose and Navvye Anand, has raised $6 million in seed fundingco-led by General Catalyst and A Capital, with backing from Paul Graham and SV Angel. The company uses proprietary AI models to design new pesticide molecules, aiming to modernize an industry still dominated by decades-old chemical methods.
Originally focused on selling AI tools to agrochemical firms, Bindwell pivoted to developing its own pesticide molecules after advice from Y Combinator co-founder Paul Graham. Its software suite includes Foldwell, a protein-structure prediction system inspired by DeepMind’s AlphaFold, and PLAPT, a protein–ligand interaction model capable of scanning billions of compounds in under six hours. Bindwell claims its AI delivers four times faster performance than AlphaFold 3.
The startup designs pesticides that target pest-specific proteins while avoiding harm to beneficial species. Based in San Carlos, California, Bindwell is validating its molecules through lab testing and plans to license its intellectual property to global agrochemical companies beginning in 2026.
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