Leather grader goes from strength to strength

Mindhive Global, which got its start grading hides at Tasman Leather in Whanganui, is eyeing further market growth in Brazel and Europe after securing new funding led by agritech venture capital firm Cultivate Ventures, with strong participation from existing shareholders.

The capital raise positions Mindhive to scale following a year of exceptional growth that saw the company's team expand from 8 to 37 people across four countries, establish operations in nine countries, and secure partnerships with industry leaders including JBS Couros, the world's largest leather processor.

Mindhive's technology transforms leather quality assessment from manual inspection — a process unchanged for millennia — into precision AI-driven grading that delivers verified hide data within seconds.

The company's expanding product portfolio spans the entire leather production process, from wet-blue grading through finished leather selection, creating comprehensive quality data that enables manufacturers to optimise production, reduce waste, and make strategic decisions based on verified information rather than subjective assessment.

CEO James Bayly says the new funding comes at a pivotal moment.

“The leather industry is undergoing its most significant transformation in centuries, driven by sustainability demands, market consolidation, and the need for verified quality data throughout supply chains.

“Our recent launch of Mindhive FinishSelect at SIMAC 2025 demonstrated that our vision of comprehensive leather intelligence resonates across the entire manufacturing process, from wet-blue to finished leather.

“This investment enables us to deliver on that vision and establish Mindhive as the intelligence layer powering the future of leather manufacturing."

Marcus Henderson, investment director at Cultivate Ventures, says the company represents exactly the type of transformative agritech investment it seeks — deep technology solving fundamental problems in a traditional global industry.

“Leather processing is a significant part of the meat production value chain, and Mindhive's AI-powered quality intelligence delivers measurable efficiency gains, waste reduction, and operational insights that were previously impossible.

“The team's execution has been exceptional, and we're excited to support their next phase of growth as they become the global standard for leather quality assessment."

Scottish Leather Group, which crafts luxury leather for iconic global brands including Aston Martin and British Airways, is Mindhive’s first FinishSelect customer and says it has transformed finished leather production.

“The system's ability to detect defects down to hair follicle level across more than 20 defect classes gives us unprecedented precision in quality assessment — catching issues that even experienced inspectors miss,” says CEO Nicholas Muirhead.

“Mindhive has been an exceptional partner — responsive, innovative, and deeply committed to solving real production challenges. Their technology is exactly what modern leather manufacturing needs."