DAY ONE: Innovation & ScienceTuesday, 1 December 2026

• Explore the evolution from high-growth excitement to strategic differentiation, examining pricing pressures and competitive dynamics reshaping the sector

• Analyse recent M&A activity, investment patterns, and what it takes for biocontrol companies to stand out in an increasingly crowded marketplace

• Despite proven impact—such as Dr. Mariangela Hungria's World Food Prize-winning work helping Brazilian farmers save nearly USD 40 billion through microbial biological nutrition across 15 million hectares—the AgBio industry faces a critical funding squeeze for projects, new product development, and market access, particularly in the Global South.

• McKinsey's 2024 analysis identifies biologicals in agriculture as the second most powerful climate action for reducing greenhouse gas emissions (at USD 177 per tonne of CO₂), yet the industry must better position these solutions to attract investment from governments, multilateral agencies, venture capital, sustainability funds, and climate action investors.

• Examine the true cost of bringing biocontrol products to market, from R&D investment to regulatory expenses and market entry strategies

• Discuss pricing strategies, farmer ROI expectations, and how to compete when differentiation isn't clear

• Explore breakthrough innovations in peptide-based biopesticides and RNA interference technology for targeted pest management

• Discuss the science behind these next-generation tools and their potential to revolutionise crop protection

• From Empirical Discovery to Predictive, Programmable Biology: How Invaio's Performance by Design™ platform combines generative AI, machine learning, computational biology, and experimental validation within a fully integrated Design–Build–Test–Learn framework to accelerate the discovery and optimization of peptide-based crop protection solutions.

• Building a Commercial Innovation Engine for Sustainable Crop Protection: Case studies demonstrating the progression of peptide-based antifungal programs from field validation toward commercial readiness, alongside the expansion of a diversified pipeline targeting fungal pathogens. The platform enables simultaneous optimization of efficacy, selectivity, safety, and manufacturability, reducing development timelines while improving the probability of success.

• Scalable Peptide Discovery for Climate-Smart Agriculture: How a continuously learning, data-generating platform can rapidly respond to emerging agricultural challenges by designing targeted biological solutions in dramatically shorter timeframes, providing highly efficacious, reliable, and affordable alternatives that contribute to more resilient and sustainable food production systems

• Novel gene edited nematicide/insecticide seed treatment.

• From discovery of wild type microbe

• Gene Editing & improvement

• Greenhouse & field trial results

• Examine the critical link between soil microbiome health and effective biocontrol strategies

• Showcase research on how biocontrol agents improve nutrient cycling, soil structure, and long-term agricultural sustainability

Explore the critical synergy between biocontrol agents and nutrient use efficiency (NUE) technologies

• Demonstrating how optimised nitrogen and phosphorus management creates healthier, more resilient crops that respond better to biological pest control whilst reducing environmental nutrient losses

• Present field trial data from California's major crops (almonds, grapes, row crops

• Biological seed treatments working synergistically with biocontrol programmes—addressing practical integration challenges including application timing, compatibility with biological formulations, and the agronomic principles that determine when "demanding more from plants and less from the planet" translates into commercial success.

• Examine novel delivery methods including drone application, precision agriculture integration, and timing optimisation

• Discuss how application technology impacts biocontrol efficacy in California's varied microclimates