Mr. Sky Kurtz is the Cofounder & Chief Executive Officer of Pure Harvest Smart Farms and is a pioneer in the Agritech sector. Pure Harvest develops world-leading controlled-environment agriculture technologies to deliver the best quality fresh produce. The Company’s hybrid growing solutions provide precise climate and environmental controls, enabling increased productivity and reduced waste (including water, energy, time, & transport). 

Since its inception, the Company has raised $138 million making the Company the most funded

startup in the Middle East in 2020, ranked by Forbes Middle East. Pure Harvest currently supplies premium quality, sustainably-grown fresh fruits & vegetables to key retailers & HORECA accounts across the UAE & is now expanding across the Gulf Region. Last year, the Company entered into a first-of-its-kind , multi-year offtake & retailer-integration partnership with The Sultan Centre (TSC) in Kuwait – creating a ‘farm center’ that will include edutainment, a retail farmers’ market, & an integrated café – emblematic of the Company’s innovative approach to delivering food security, water conservation, economic diversification, & sustainability.

Prior to founding Pure Harvest, Mr. Kurtz Cofounded Vence – a wearable technology solution for animal protein farming that semi-automates rotational grazing, reinventing livestock management.  Mr. Kurtz also served as a Senior Executive with Francisco Partners, a $24 billion tech investment firm based in California and an affiliate of Sequoia Capital, a world-leading venture investment firm.  Mr. Kurtz invested in and served on the boards of numerous companies across many sectors, with annual turnover ranging from $25 million to $2 billion dollars.

Mr. Kurtz was awarded an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business and holds a B.S. in Finance from the W.P. Carey School of Business at ASU, where he graduated Summa Cum Laude and was named the Turken Family Outstanding Graduating Senior (valedictory honor).