Fresh off their first place win for “Best Investment Opportunity” in Next Wave Impact’s Founders of Color Showcase 2020, AG Tools – the Wayfinder startup that supplies real-time data analytics, reports and forecasts to optimize the food and agricultural supply chain – recently beat out five other finalists to win first place and $125,000 at the 2020 Flywheel Investment Conference.
Hosted in Wenatchee, Washington, the annual conference brings together angel investors, venture capitalists, entrepreneurs, startups and community members. The all-day conference features seminars, keynote presentations and an investment competition for the purpose of supporting early-stage companies.
While the pandemic prevented the conference from taking place in person, the event was moved online, where 1,200 people tuned in to a livestream. Six companies, including AG Tools, were given 10 minutes to pitch their company, and over the following two weeks, the Flywheel Angel Network conducted due diligence, ultimately announcing AG Tools as the winner on June 4.
“This one was special,” said CEO Martha Montoya, who presented alongside her brother Gustavo Montoya, chief technology officer of AG Tools. “Because our engineers are in the region so I know it meant a lot to them who work so hard and also for my brother who is now a celebrity in the ‘Apple Capital of the World’ – Wenatchee!”
Much like the city of Wenatchee, AG Tools has strong roots in both agriculture and technology, which allows it to seamlessly combine the two to increase profitability, minimize food loss and provide peace of mind for farmers, shippers and buyers in the agriculture industry. With their $125,000 award, AG Tools plans to expand their engineering workforce and build a call center in Wenatchee, bringing more jobs to the region.
Learn more about AG Tools.
Main photo: Siblings Martha Montoya (CEO) and Gustavo Montoya (chief technology officer) pose at the 2020 Flywheel Investment Conference.