Farming meets science in California’s agtech industry, and the Central Coast has both in abundance.
The region’s deep agricultural roots and celebrated wine industry — spanning Paso Robles, SLO Coastal, Santa Maria, Santa Ynez and Santa Barbara — are reaching into the future with precision farming and innovative sustainability practices to conserve water, increase efficiency and boost profitability.
These practices have boosted crop values and the industry’s economic impact by more than a third over the last decade. With the Central Coast’s strong sense of stewardship for its natural assets, advancing sustainability is a key focus to ensuring the land continues to provide for generations to come.
Recent Highlights
Hortau among Top 100 AI Companies to Watch in 2023
Hortau’s patented irrigation management system has been helping growers keep their plants healthy and use their inputs more efficiently.
TRIC Robotics targets pests with "giant roomba"
TRIC Robotics is revolutionizing pest control, using ultraviolet light in place of chemical pesticides to help farmers control pests and disease.
ASSETS + RESOURCES

Cal Poly
The top 5 College of Agriculture Food and Environmental Sciences cultivates partnerships and innovation through applied research centers including the Irrigation Training & Research Center, the new $22 million Justin and J.Lohr Center for Wine and Viticulture, and the Strawberry Center.

Robust ecosystem
The Central Coast is home to an abundant agricultural ecosystem, with two active Farm Bureaus, a handful of wine region alliances and specialized business services such as banking and insurance. A SLO County Farm Trail connects the industry to the region’s thriving tourism scene.

Sustainable Ag Expo
This annual event presents the latest agtech research from experts across the world, hosted by the Vineyard Team, an internationally recognized leader in sustainable winegrowing and developer of the SIP-certified sustainable wine designation.
Agtech incubator
The successful HotHouse incubator has launched an agtech incubator at the Sandbox in Paso Robles, offering a range of services to support and scale startups in agriculture technology. The location also houses an SBDC outreach center.
Allan Hancock
The college has a rapidly growing agriculture program — including an industrial hemp research program and a National Science Foundation-funded project advancing precision agriculture through industry partnerships — as well as viticulture and enology.
UC-Santa Barbara
Several UCSB programs advance the field of agriculture, including the Bren School of Environmental Science & Management, the UCSB Smart Farm, and the Food-Energy-Water focus area at the Institute for Energy Efficiency.
$3B
SLO + Santa Barbara County crop value 2021
$9.7B
2021 agtech investment in CA, more than next 10 states combined
10,000
R&D ag acres at Cal Poly
Agtech businesses
Click the dots to see companies in the region, and find detailed company, industry and regional data in our data center.