BiomEdit, an animal health biotechnology company, has secured nearly $2 million from the Bezos Earth Fund’s AI for Climate and Nature Grand Challenge to advance its Rumen Digital Twin project. Working with Bioversity International USA and Yale University, the company aims to help beef producers cut methane emissions and improve feed efficiency.
The team will train an AI model using data from over 20,000 cattle across 25 countries, including developing regions. The system will link microbiome, diet, methane, and genetic data to predict how different feed additives and management practices affect performance and emissions.
Instead of traditional, time-consuming feed trials, the Rumen Digital Twin will run AI-driven simulations. These virtual herds will help identify precise nutrition strategies that cut methane by up to 75% while maintaining or improving growth and feed conversion.
“The power of AI and the microbiome can change how we manage cattle for both productivity and climate goals,” said Aaron Schacht, CEO of BiomEdit.
The project will also launch a cloud-based platform where users can test interventions and design low-emission feeding programs. It will be free to researchers and nonprofits, with commercial licensing options available.
This initiative builds on BiomEdit’s $4.5 million Gates Foundation grant to reduce methane and improve feed efficiency in beef cattle across Africa and South Asia — highlighting the company’s growing role in sustainable beef production.
