Justin Mast and Lee von Kraus co-founded Electric Plant after Mast discovered research on a houseplant that moved toward light by sending electrical signals through its tissues. Over the past three years, the startup has developed an AI language model called Bombadil designed to decode the electrical signals traveling within a plant's stem. Their goal is to create technology that allows humans to better understand what plants need, effectively “listening” to their subtle bioelectrical communications.

Electric Plant recently closed an $11.2 million seed funding round led by Onto Ventures and Climactic, with contributions from several other investors. Mast explains that traditional agricultural tools like soil probes, handheld spectroscopes, and satellite imagery provide limited and delayed insights, failing to capture plants’ real-time requirements. By contrast, Electric Plant’s approach harnesses a deeper connection with the plants themselves through electrical signals, potentially revolutionizing how growers monitor and respond to plant health.

The company’s sensors, which cost mere tens of dollars, attach to plants using stainless steel screws that penetrate the cambium layer beneath the bark to capture minute electrical fluctuations. These sensors relay data wirelessly to a base station for analysis by Bombadil, which currently understands signals from around 125 plant species. This system enables growers to optimize watering and fertilizer use, with Mast estimating water savings of 20% or more and enhanced crop yields.

Although Electric Plant has yet to disclose its customer base, the technology has clear applications in agriculture and forestry, spanning a wide spectrum of plant types from ferns to redwoods to common vegetables. Mast highlights the unprecedented scope of Bombadil, describing it as the most diverse biological electrical signal model ever created, surpassing anything comparable in the animal kingdom. This innovation promises to transform plant care by translating plants’ own electrical “language” into actionable information for humans.