Who is Nicola Kerslake and what is her background?

Kerslake is the founder of Contain and formerly founded Newbean Capital and launched Indoor Ag-Con, one of the sector's largest conferences for indoor and controlled-environment farming. She has more than a decade of experience managing early-stage venture capital and her background spans institutional investment, venture capital, and agricultural finance.

What does Contain bring to Reservoir?

Contain brings its marketplace, underwriting, financing experience, and market intelligence capabilities, which will help Reservoir expand how it supports startups moving from pilot to commercial scale.

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Reservoir VC acquires Contain to expand support for agricultural AI startups scaling from pilot to commercial deployment.

The Robot Report2h ago3 min read

Key takeaway

Investment firm Reservoir Co. has acquired agriculture finance platform Contain Inc. and appointed Contain's founder Nicola Kerslake as a general partner to expand support for AI-enabled agricultural startups. The move reflects Reservoir's strategy to help rural technology companies transition from pilot projects to commercial scale by combining venture capital with deep expertise in hardware deployment and agricultural finance.

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3 Key Points

What happened
Investment firm Reservoir Co. purchased agriculture finance and data platform Contain Inc. in its first corporate acquisition. Reservoir appointed Contain's founder Nicola Kerslake as a general partner, who will chair the investment committee and oversee underwriting as the firm expands into agricultural equipment and controlled environment agriculture.
Why it matters
Reservoir is positioning itself to help AI-enabled agricultural startups move from early testing to commercial scale by combining capital with expertise in hardware deployment, unit economics, and rural finance—capabilities the sector has historically lacked in a single partner.
What to watch
Reservoir is hosting a two-day event called Ruggedize in August 2026 at its Salinas, California site, focused on the challenges of building robots and automation for agricultural applications.

FAQ

Who is Nicola Kerslake and what is her background?: Kerslake is the founder of Contain and formerly founded Newbean Capital and launched Indoor Ag-Con, one of the sector's largest conferences for indoor and controlled-environment farming. She has more than a decade of experience managing early-stage venture capital and her background spans institutional investment, venture capital, and agricultural finance.
What does Contain bring to Reservoir?: Contain brings its marketplace, underwriting, financing experience, and market intelligence capabilities, which will help Reservoir expand how it supports startups moving from pilot to commercial scale.

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