DIAL Ventures launches Fund II after building $30M agrifood portfolio

By AI, Created 6:11 PM UTC, June 03, 2026, /AGP/ – DIAL Ventures and Grit Road Partners announced the first close of DIAL Ventures Fund II on June 3, 2026, as the agrifood venture studio prepares for a new cycle in August. The fund follows six studio cycles and a portfolio valued at more than $30 million, with investors getting a direct role in shaping the problems the studio tackles next.

Why it matters: - DIAL Ventures is doubling down on a venture-studio model that has already produced companies moving from problem validation to paying customers. - Fund II arrives as agrifood companies face pressure from AI adoption, supply chain visibility and workforce management. - New partners in the fund will help define what gets built, giving operators more influence over startup direction.

What happened: - DIAL Ventures and Grit Road Partners announced the first close of DIAL Ventures Fund II on June 3, 2026. - The next studio cycle begins in August. - Grit Road Partners is keeping a rolling close open for Fund II. - The partner group forming around the fund includes leaders from agricultural inputs, equipment manufacturing, ag retail, processing and food production, livestock and farm operations.

The details: - DIAL Ventures is the agrifood venture studio affiliated with the Purdue Applied Research Institute at Purdue University. - Since its founding, the studio has completed six cycles and built a portfolio including Gripp, Croft, Oaken, Fieldist and Aerton. - PitchBook values that portfolio at more than $30 million. - The studio says each company was built from the ground up with industry operators and moved from validated problem to paying customers through co-development across the agrifood value chain. - Croft has thousands of employer customers and posted 2,000% revenue growth over a year. - Gripp is used by more than 70 agricultural operations and raised a $1.5 million pre-seed round. - Gripp won the 2025 American Farm Bureau Federation Ag Innovation Challenge. - Oaken won Overall Supply Chain Solution of the Year from Agtech Breakthrough and was named a Pitch Winner at the RALLY 2025 Pitch Competition. - The fund is being built with direct input from Fund II partners and operators, rather than preselected problems. - More information is available at the company’s announcement.

Between the lines: - The announcement signals that DIAL Ventures is using Fund I results as proof that agrifood startups can be built more effectively around operator-defined pain points. - The studio model is designed to shorten the path from idea to adoption by tying company creation to active industry demand. - The timing suggests DIAL Ventures sees this as a window for new tools in a fast-changing sector, not a routine fundraising update.

What’s next: - DIAL Ventures expects the next studio to start in August. - The rolling close for Fund II continues as additional partners join. - New investors will help steer the studio’s problem selection and company-building process. - The current partner base is still forming, so the fund may expand its industry reach before the studio cycle begins.

The bottom line: - DIAL Ventures is turning a $30 million-plus portfolio into momentum for Fund II, with agrifood operators now helping choose the next companies from the start.