BioHarvest secures US$1.4 million Israel Innovation Authority grant to advance AI-powered plant cell synthesis

BioHarvest Sciences has been awarded a 4.33 million NIS grant (approximately US$1.4 million) from the Israel Innovation Authority (IIA) to accelerate the use of artificial intelligence and advanced data science in its Botanical Synthesis platform, with the aim of speeding up the development of plant-based compounds for contract development and manufacturing (CDMO) customers.

• BioHarvest secured a 4.33 million NIS (approximately US$1.4 million) grant from the Israel Innovation Authority to support AI-driven plant cell culture research.
• The project integrated machine learning, digital sensing and bioinformatics to improve prediction of plant cell growth and bioactive compound yields.
• The funding followed an earlier IIA grant supporting manufacturing automation, extending BioHarvest's AI strategy from research through commercial production.

The funding will support a research initiative that integrates machine learning, computer vision, high-throughput digital sensing and data science into BioHarvest's biological development workflows. The company said the project is designed to move plant cell culture away from traditional trial-and-error approaches toward a more predictable, data-driven development process.

According to BioHarvest, the platform will combine bioinformatics, chemo-informatics and artificial intelligence to predict the success of plant cell propagation while maximizing the yield of active metabolites.

Dr Zaki Rakib, Chairman & Chief Executive Officer of BioHarvest, said: "We are extremely thankful for the additional support from the IIA. This grant, the second we have received from IIA, strengthens the Company's financial position by providing non-dilutive capital support as we additionally implement a more efficient, smarter means for our biological development workflows."

The company said the research will accelerate development of its computational discovery engine, which combines proprietary predictive machine learning models with real-time digital sensing to identify optimal biological pathways and increase bioactive yields across different plant species.

BioHarvest said the platform will also use secure scientific knowledge bases tailored to the domain, allowing researchers to improve the forecasting, monitoring and scaling of complex plant-derived compounds while streamlining early-stage research and development.

The latest award is the second grant BioHarvest has received from the Israel Innovation Authority in 2026. The first funding package focused on scaling manufacturing by introducing industrial automation and machine learning into production operations. The newly announced grant is dedicated exclusively to strengthening the company's early-stage research capabilities through predictive AI.

BioHarvest said the two projects are intended to complement one another by connecting AI-assisted laboratory discovery with automated commercial-scale manufacturing.

The grant is structured as non-dilutive funding in the form of a zero-interest loan. Repayment is dependent on the achievement of predefined commercial milestones and would be made solely from future revenues generated by the funded project. The company said no equity or equity-linked instruments were issued in connection with the funding.

BioHarvest develops plant-based molecules using its patented Botanical Synthesis technology, which enables the production of plant compounds without cultivating the source plant. The company applies the platform through its CDMO business while also developing proprietary nutraceutical products based on the technology.