Horticultural LED lighting developer VividGro acquired WeGrow, a cannabis home grow app with over 20,000 downloads in the iTunes Store. WeGrow, which launched its chatbot-based technology in April 2017, has dramatically simplified the learning process of growing cannabis using personalized conversations.

WeGrow developed GrowBot Elle to help plant growers. (Image: WeGrow)

“VividGro acquired WeGrow to further its transition from a provider of LED lighting solutions to being an integrated AgTech company that provides crop-agnostic hardware and software solutions to indoor farmers of all varieties and sizes,” said David Friedman, VividGro’s President. Friedman added, “WeGrow’s superior technology supports this transition. We plan to rapidly expand the functionality of WeGrow’s chatbot platform for the home grow market and extend our reach to licensed cannabis cultivators worldwide”.

“We’re excited to have completed this sale less than a year after launching our first smartbot,” said Mason Levy, CEO of Education Bot, Inc. “VividGro is a perfect partner who will advance our vision of WeGrow while expanding into every aspect of horticulture -- from cannabis to tomatoes.“

A 2017 Harris poll shows that 8.8 million, or 16% of all adults, would grow marijuana if it were legal to do so in their state. Growing marijuana for personal use increases the number of gardeners in the United States by 9% to 152.1 million. The survey also finds that the age group most likely to grow their own cannabis is millennials, the target market for a chatbot platform. Moreover, VividGro’s expansion of the platform to serve other crops addresses the growing needs of indoor home gardeners (people who grow vegetables or flowers indoors), a segment consisting of 60% of people worldwide.

The chatbot technology is designed for users to engage via conversation with the platform, which uses artificial intelligence to provide proactive insights to optimize the performance of home gardens or commercial operations.

The WeGrow founding team continues to enhance smartbot-based engagement under the Swivl brand.