Wild Bioscience Ltd (Wild Bio) and The Traits Company have announced a collaboration to develop high-performing soybean varieties by combining AI-driven trait design with leading commercial soybean genetics. The collaboration was announced at the Plant and Animal Genomes Conference, a leading international scientific meeting for genomics.
Wild Bio is an agricultural biotechnology spinout from the University of Oxford applying machine learning and evolutionary biology to design resilient crops for a changing climate. The Traits Company is a North Carolina based trait discovery and development company with deep expertise in the omics of elite field-crop germplasm and is a strategic investment of GDM, a global leader in field crop genetics.
Under the collaboration, the companies will integrate Wild Bio’s proprietary trait design platform with The Traits Company’s product development pipeline to generate new elite soybean varieties, with a pathway to commercial deployment at scale through GDM.
Dr. Ross Hendron, Co-Founder and CEO of Wild Bioscience, said: “We’re excited to collaborate with The Traits Company to develop next-generation soybeans. Advances in soybean genetics represent a high-leverage pathway for improving agriculture, and we believe our platform enables a systematic, design-led approach to delivering efficiency gains over time. The Traits Company’s combination of extensive soybean trait expertise and elite germplasm deployed at scale across major soybean growing areas makes them an ideal partner for translating those gains into real-world impact for one of the world’s most important farming systems.”
Dr. Fayaz Khazi, Founder and CEO of The Traits Company, said: “This collaboration unites complementary strengths in trait innovation and soybean product development to accelerate the creation of truly differentiated soybean varieties. Together, we are focused on delivering high-performance products tailored to the world’s most important soybean-growing regions. This partnership marks a meaningful step in unlocking the full power of advanced technology combined with elite genetics—driving scalable, impactful innovation for growers.”
About Wild Bioscience
Wild Bioscience Ltd is an agricultural biotechnology company applying evolutionary biology and AI to develop resilient, high-performance crops for a changing planet. Founded in 2021 as a spin-out from the University of Oxford, the company was established by Dr. Ross Hendron and Prof. Steve Kelly and is backed by the Ellison Institute Oxford, Oxford Science Enterprises, Braavos Capital, and the University of Oxford. For more information: www.wildbioscience.com
About The Traits Company
Based in Research Triangle Park, NC, The Traits Company is an agricultural biotechnology company focused on value-added trait development in row crops. The company’s unique platform integrates crop genetics, computational biology, and advanced breeding technologies to create products that enhance field productivity and promote sustainable agriculture. For more information: www.thetraitscompany.com