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Conservation Tech
Overview
Conservation Tech refers to the application of technology to biodiversity conservation efforts, such as tracking, monitoring, and regenerating forest and marine ecosystems. These technologies include drones, aerial imagery, unmanned surface vehicles (USVs), biologgers, bioacoustic devices, sensors, environmental DNA (eDNA), and AI and machine learning (AI/ML).
Ongoing deforestation and forest degradation threaten biodiversity. This loss of natural habitat also puts nearly 50% of the world's species at risk of extinction by the end of the century unless immediate action is taken. As a result, efforts to mitigate and reverse ecosystem damage are on the rise, with companies developing innovative solutions, such as forest management systems, ocean tracking devices, and conservation platforms, to restore balance and help businesses operate with less negative environmental impact. These efforts are further supported by ambitious net-zero emissions targets, the introduction of favorable policies and frameworks, such as the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, and the popularity of conservation-led carbon offsets, such as REDD and tree planting. In addition, an escalating freshwater crisis affecting billions of people is driving the adoption of more cost-effective and sustainable desalination solutions.
Industry Updates
Market Sizing
The US market for Conservation Tech could reach USD 1.2 billion–1.9 billion by 2028
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Use cases
ConservationTech solutions are increasingly being utilized to address biodiversity and climate change goals across sectors. The industrials sector, especially in environmental and facilities services, leads adoption of ConservationTech solutions. The consumer staples and utilities sectors also make use of use these technologies, focusing on subsegments like agricultural products and water utilities, respectively.
ConservationTech solutions have found primary application within the industrials sector in tracking and monitoring adverse weather events. Additionally, they are instrumental in promoting responsible plantation practices, leading to reforestation efforts. Furthermore, ConservationTech is making inroads in the agricultural industry for vegetation monitoring and enhancing water quality levels in the utilities sector. Notably, governmental organizations worldwide are incorporating ConservationTech via conservation projects to enhance environmental practices, specifically targeting the aforementioned use cases.
We have identified key ConservationTech use cases below:
Market Mapping
The Conservation Tech space is currently dominated by startups, particularly in segments such as 1) forest and wildlife monitoring and 2) marine monitoring, which account for half of the identified players in the industry in these segments alone.
Notably, over two-thirds of these companies are in expansion or go-to-market stages, suggesting that these solutions have proven commercial scope. Minimum viable product stage companies account for the smaller share of the space, competing with companies like Saildrone, LiquidRobotics, and Nature Metrics and standing out for their in-house tracking and monitoring solutions.
Incumbent activity is mainly focused on forest and wildlife monitoring and forest regeneration, with limited activity in marine monitoring and nil activities across the other segments. However, there are few established players that are focusing on providing supportive technologies, mainly by partnering with disruptors or related players.
As most disruptors and incumbents primarily focus on forest and wildlife monitoring and marine monitoring, these two industry segments were the highest funded, followed closely by forest regeneration. Resultantly, ecosystem monitoring, on the whole, has attracted more funding than ecosystem regeneration.
Forest and Wildlife Monitoring
Marine Monitoring
Forest Regeneration
Marine Regeneration
Supportive Solutions
Conservation Platforms
Next-gen Desalination
The Disruptors
Over two-thirds of startups in the industry are classified as expansion or go-to-market stage disruptors, as most have proven their technologies and commercialized their solutions. Most of these startups focus on providing tracking and monitoring solutions for wildlife, forests, and oceans. These companies are relatively well-funded and have an established presence, compared to startups that are focusing on providing next-generation desalination or regeneration solutions. Given that the latter solutions are generally regarded as “an emerging field of study,” there is a considerable amount of time between the “idea phase” and proving commercial scope.
A relatively small number of startups are focusing on providing supportive technology solutions, and most have already reached the go-to-market or expansion stages. These companies mainly target businesses whose activities involve forests and oceans, providing them with subscription-based solutions for their conservation needs. These producers have already attracted a reasonably large customer base.
Funding History
Competitive Analysis
Incumbents
Major global aerospace giants, such as Airbus and Boeing, are among the incumbents active in Conservation Tech space, focusing mainly on providing tracking and monitoring solutions. For these players, the most common growth strategy involves M&As and product collaborations with startups and other incumbents in the field.
In-house developments by incumbents are limited to forest and wildlife monitoring, forest regneration, and marine monitoring segments. There is a lack of incumbent activity in marine regeneration, conservation platforms, and next-gen desalination, implying that these are still emerging Conservation Tech solutions within the industry.
In terms of M&A activities, Boeing’s acquisition of Liquid Robotics in 2016 is one of the key acquisitions in the space to date. An M&A in more recent times involved Innovasea acquiring Aquanetix, a UK-based aquaculture software company, to improve Innovasea’s precision aquaculture platform and provide better supportive technologies that allow customers make data-driven decisions.
Notable Investors
