Greg App Secures $5.4M Seed Funding - Plant Lover's App

The Flourishing Houseplant Industry and the Rise of Greg

Prior to the widespread impact of the pandemic, the houseplant market was already experiencing growth. However, with increased time spent at home, living spaces have transformed into thriving indoor gardens for many.

Greg Secures $5.4 Million in Seed Funding

Greg, an application leveraging machine learning to assist in plant care, has recently announced the successful completion of a $5.4 million seed funding round. Index led this investment, with additional participation from First Round Capital.

The company benefits from the guidance of experienced advisors, including Elie Seidman, former CEO of Tinder, Eliza Blank, founder of The Sill, a plant delivery service, and Darryl Cheng, a popular “plant-stagrammer” with a substantial following of 600,000.

Currently, Greg operates with a fully remote team of 11 individuals. Future hiring plans include a Head of Brand and at least five additional engineers, notably a Senior Android engineer, as the app is presently exclusive to iOS.

How Greg Simplifies Plant Care

Greg’s core function is to provide users with tailored watering schedules for their plants. Unlike generic weekly reminders, Greg’s recommendations are customized based on each plant’s species.

Factors considered include the plant’s geographic location, the amount of sunlight it receives, and its proximity to windows. This personalized approach ensures optimal growth in any environment.

The app also features a community-based discover feed, allowing users to share images of their plants, often affectionately named, such as “Keanu Leaves” and “Michelle Branch.”

A Mission-Driven Company

For Alex Ross, CEO, co-founder, and engineer, plant care extends beyond a mere pandemic-era hobby. Gregarious, Inc., the entity behind Greg, is structured as a public benefit corporation.

Through a legally binding public statement, the team commits to generating a positive impact – or minimizing negative effects – on Earth’s ecosystems. The company’s objectives encompass advancing plant life understanding, environmental stewardship, and fostering thriving conditions for all life forms.

“Plants offer a valuable lens through which to understand the workings of our planet,” Ross stated. “A key motivation for launching Greg is the belief that broader ecological and food system awareness is crucial for informed societal decision-making in the coming decades.”

Building on Past Experience

Ross’s entrepreneurial journey includes a prior role at Tinder, where he spearheaded the creation of the Trust & Safety team, dedicated to user protection. This experience demonstrated the potential of mobile applications to cultivate a large user base.

“Tinder was innovative in its approach to trust and safety,” Ross explained. “I focused on aspects of Tinder that delivered a clear public benefit. Now, with Greg, public benefit is the central focus.”

Growth and User Engagement

Since its launch in October 2020, Greg has attracted 50,000 monthly active users. These users have cataloged 350,000 plants, representing 4,000 distinct species, and have engaged with the app over 2 million times.

The app’s methodology is rooted in the algorithm developed by the UN Food & Agriculture Organization for estimating crop water usage. Each user interaction – including photos, watering actions, and snoozed reminders – contributes to the refinement of Greg’s AI.

The more data the AI processes, the more effectively it can optimize plant growth strategies.

Future Goals and Collaboration

“Our aspiration is to contribute back to the UN Food & Agriculture Organization algorithm, enabling farmers in developing nations to enhance crop yields and improve their food systems,” Ross shared. “This commitment is fundamental to our establishment as a public benefit corporation.”

Addressing Challenges and Expanding Reach

Ross acknowledges that a primary challenge for Greg is increasing brand awareness. To address this, the app has partnered with plant retailers like House Plant Shop and American Plant Exchange, offering promotional codes for its premium subscription, Super Greg.

Super Greg subscribers benefit from unlimited plant additions – the free version limits users to five plants. Subscription options include $6.50 monthly, $2.50 monthly with annual billing, or a one-time fee of $49.99 for lifetime access.

“These partnerships have proven to be a valuable source of user acquisition,” Ross noted. “Once users are within the app, they gain a deeper understanding of their plants’ needs.”

A Data-Driven Ecosystem

Ross draws a parallel between Greg’s model and Waze, where collective user data enhances the experience for all drivers. Similarly, as Greg accumulates more knowledge about plant care, it can leverage that data to advance its environmental mission.

The company envisions building a highly scalable platform capable of surpassing existing technologies in its understanding of plant life.

The Benefits of Plant Ownership

In the context of ongoing lockdowns and remote work, Greg offers particular value to its users.

“I firmly believe that plants have an objectively positive impact on mental well-being,” Ross concluded. “I haven’t encountered anyone who transitioned from owning plants to discontinuing plant ownership.”