AI + Genetics: How Avalo Is Breeding Water- and Heat-Resilient Cotton in Texas

Avalo uses AI and genetic diversity to breed climate-resilient cotton

Avalo, a North Carolina–based plant biotechnology startup, is combining genetic diversity and artificial intelligence to develop cotton varieties that perform with less water, fertilizer and pesticide. Using its Rapid Evolution Platform, the company applies AI-driven genomic analysis to identify and optimize traits that can be tailored to specific regions and climates.

Why resilience matters

Nick Schwanz, Avalo’s chief marketing officer, explained that decades of high-intensity, yield-focused agriculture reduced resilience across many cropping systems. "The Green Revolution increased yields, but it also led to high inputs, increased soil disturbance and lower resilience," Schwanz said. "The next big frontier in agriculture is resilience — crops that can thrive with fewer resources and fewer environmental trade-offs."

Research in Clarendon, Texas

Avalo operates a 5-acre research plot in Clarendon, on the northeast edge of what locals call the "world’s largest cotton patch," a region responsible for roughly 30–50% of U.S. cotton production. The plot — one of three Avalo R&D sites in Texas — is designed to generate high-quality, real-world training data for machine-learning models.

Chief science officer Mariano Alvarez said Avalo "raided" the USDA cotton seed bank in College Station to capture a wide range of genetic diversity: wild, historical, cultivated and modern varieties. "In crop development you usually reduce diversity quickly, but for machine learning you need variation to learn — you can’t learn without options," Alvarez said.

The plot contains about 500 cotton varieties, with each row representing a different line and each plant tagged for identification. Weekly drone flights create digital maps and collect growth metrics — canopy size, light interception and other indicators — producing a growth trajectory for every plant. Those measurements, together with environmental data from an on-site weather station, are fed into Avalo’s machine-learning models to predict how varieties will perform in farmers’ fields in future seasons.

Target traits: low-water and heat tolerance

Rebecca White, Avalo’s chief product officer, said the company is prioritizing traits that address the local water and heat challenges. Clarendon sits above the Ogallala Aquifer, which has seen declining water levels; some wells in the area no longer provide sufficient irrigation. "Farmers need varieties that do more than resist drought for a season — they need varieties bred to perform under chronically low-water conditions," White said.

Heat tolerance is another key focus. Cotton requires a meaningful drop between daytime and nighttime temperatures to mature properly; if nights stay too warm, plants may shed blooms as a stress response rather than set fiber. Avalo’s models seek genetic combinations that maintain productivity and fiber quality under elevated night temperatures.

Sustainability and farm partnerships

Dryland cotton in Texas can lack the fiber quality demanded by high-end textiles, often due to limited water and nitrogen availability. However, dryland systems can also offer sustainability advantages: lower irrigation-related emissions and the ability to rotate cotton with legumes such as peanuts, which fix nitrogen and reduce synthetic fertilizer needs.

Avalo works with local farmers to run its test plots and helps provide economic support during difficult seasons. Participating growers receive five cents per pound for delivered cotton and seed cost contributions; in return they follow protocol requirements (including a fertilizer cap of no more than 30 lbs per acre) and allow field data collection for lifecycle assessments. Roger Wade, a fifth-generation partner farmer, highlighted the economic pressures of depressed cotton prices and rising input costs such as diesel and chemicals.

"You have to win the ecological and eco-economical problem at the same time," said Schwanz, summarizing Avalo’s aim to breed true resilience that benefits farmers, ecosystems and markets.

What’s next

Cotton will be Avalo’s first commercial product, with plans to apply the same region-specific, data-driven approach to other crops such as rice, rubber and sugar. By combining diverse genetics, high-resolution field data and modern machine learning, Avalo aims to create seed varieties that are practical for farmers and better for the environment.

Key facts:

• Location: 5-acre test plot in Clarendon, Texas
• Genetic diversity: ~500 cotton varieties sourced from the USDA seed bank
• Data collection: weekly drone flights + on-site weather station
• Farmer incentives: $0.05 per pound and seed support; fertilizer cap ≤ 30 lbs/acre