Corral Technologies, a Nebraska AgTech startup that develops virtual fencing solutions for ranchers, has secured $1.38M in funding to accelerate the expansion of its technology across the United States. The latest funding round was led by Chicago-based M25, with participation from Grit Road Partners and Invest Nebraska.
Under the leadership of Founder and CEO Jack Keating, Corral has developed technology solutions to enhance the sustainability and efficiency of cattle ranching operations since 2019. Keating’s vision for a better way to herd cattle using technology stems from 15 years of experience working on his family’s third-generation ranch in Nebraska.
Ranchers use Corral Technologies’ virtual fencing to remotely move and contain their cattle by creating virtual pastures anywhere on their operation. The technology allows ranchers to monitor individual cattle health, manage activity data and record sustainability metrics for each cow. Corral’s mission is to use technology to address ranchers’ needs, especially challenges related to rotational grazing and setting up cross fences. And to enable a data-driven approach to livestock management.
“Corral is set to achieve significant milestones in 2024,” Keating said. “We will be deploying our commercial collars to producers across approximately 25 states… It will be the first year when Corral is projected to pass $1M in sales.”
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He said the company will add headcount to its sales, customer success and engineering departments this year.
Keating also highlighted the upcoming release of a new collar design in 2025, enhanced durability and reliability for their devices, along with continuous improvements to software features aimed at boosting producer profitability.
M25 Managing Partner Victor Gutwein said the venture capital firm typically doesn’t invest in AgTech for ranchers because the segment tends to be slow to adopt new technologies. He said the demonstrated demand from ranchers for Corral’s solution stood out to the M25 team.
“Corral has successfully disrupted the industry by enabling fewer ranch hands to work a broader area, increasing herd size sustainably and improving overall herd management,” Gutwein added.
The funds raised will be utilized to fulfill production demands, expand the team and further refine both the hardware and software components of Corral’s virtual fencing system. Plans are underway to launch a rancher-dealer network, which currently consists of 15 ranchers across 10 states.
Ben Williamson, managing director at Grit Road Partners and Corral board member, expressed excitement about the virtual fencing space. “We believe the industry is finally ready to adopt this technology. It’s clear to us that there’s no one better to understand the customer and capture this opportunity than Jack and the team he’s built.”
