Tenacious Ventures

Tenacious Ventures is an Australian venture capital firm based in Melbourne, established in 2019 by co-founders Sarah Nolet and J Matthew Pryor. The firm positions itself as Australia's first dedicated agrifood tech venture capital firm, focusing on early-stage startups that are actively transforming the food and agriculture sectors. Their core mission is to unlock climate impact at scale in agri-food systems, driving the transition towards a carbon-neutral and climate change-resilient future.

What truly differentiates Tenacious Ventures is its multi-entity platform, encompassing Tenacious Ventures Capital for investments, Tenacious Insights for strategic advisory and thought leadership, and Tenacious Ventures Group as a shared-services backbone. This integrated approach allows them to operate at the intersection of capital, innovation, adoption, and systems change, providing comprehensive support beyond just financial backing. They proactively identify shifts in the agri-food system, offering collaborative research and advisory services informed by deep sector-specific knowledge.

The firm serves a diverse portfolio of early-stage agrifood tech startups, with a significant emphasis on Australian-domiciled businesses, aiming for global potential and impact. Key achievements include managing over A$50 million across two early-stage VC funds, Fund I and the recently closed Fund II. They have successfully backed leading companies such as SwarmFarm Robotics, Goterra, Regrow, and Vow, among others, demonstrating a strong track record of identifying and nurturing impactful innovations.

Under the leadership of its founding partners, Sarah Nolet, Managing Partner, and J Matthew Pryor, Founding Partner, Tenacious Ventures has also become a significant ecosystem builder. Sarah Nolet is a globally recognised food systems innovation expert and co-founder of AgThentic and Farmers2Founders, while Matthew Pryor is a serial entrepreneur and agtech pioneer. The team also includes COO Vela Georgiev, Investment Principal Maddie Mitchell, Independent IC Member Simon Uzcilas, and Insights Lead Adam Taylor, all contributing diverse expertise from engineering, agricultural science, and venture investing. Their commitment extends to active contributions to the ecosystem, including helping found evokeAG and AusAgritech, producing numerous podcast episodes, and sharing insights with a large global audience, reflecting their belief that transforming the global food system requires more than just one kind of capital and company.