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UPSIDE Foods

ApplicationBerkeley, CA, USAFounded 2015· One of 381 Application companies tracked by AMPulse

Develops cultivated meat directly from animal cells using biotechnology, aiming to produce sustainable meat products without raising or slaughtering animals.

CEO / Founder
Uma Valeti
Team Size
51-200
Stage
Active
Total Funding
$608M
Latest Round
Series C
Key Investors
Temasek; Abu Dhabi Growth Fund; Baillie Gifford; Givaudan; John Doerr; SALT Fund; Synthesis Capital; Bill Gates; Cargill; Cercano Management; CPT Capital; Dentsu Ventures; EDBI; Kimbal and Christiana Musk; Norwest Venture Partners; SoftBank Vision Fund 2; SOSV's IndieBio; Tyson Foods; Richard Branson; Threshold Ventures

Technology & Products

Key Products

Cultivated chicken (whole-textured and ground), cultivated beef, cultivated duck. Completed first-ever consumer sale of cultivated meat in the United States and expanded commercial product portfolio to include ground-textured cultivated meat products.

Technological Advantage

Proprietary cell culture and differentiation processes enable production of structured meat products; first US company to receive FDA approval for cultivated chicken (2021).

Differentiation

Value Proposition

Reduces environmental impact of meat production by using 90% less land and water than conventional methods, while offering a humane and clean meat alternative with potential for on-demand production.

How They Differentiate

First-mover advantage with early breakthroughs and regulatory approvals; strong investor backing from major food and tech firms; focuses on multiple meat types (beef, chicken, duck).

Market & Competition

Target Customers

Foodservice, retail consumers, and meat producers seeking sustainable alternatives

Industry Verticals

Food Technology; Agriculture; Biotechnology

Competitors

Aleph Farms; Mosa Meat; GOOD Meat

Growth & Milestones

Growth Metrics

Raised over $180 million total; production capacity scalable to 50,000 lbs/year; first FDA approval for cultivated chicken in US.

Major Milestones

World's first cultivated beef meatball (2016); World's first cultivated chicken and duck (2017); $161M Series B funding (2020); FDA approval for cultivated chicken (2021); Rebranded to UPSIDE Foods (2021)

Notable Customers

Bar Crenn (San Francisco restaurant by three-Michelin-star chef Dominique Crenn) - first restaurant to serve UPSIDE's cultivated chicken

https://upsidefoods.com

Why this company matters

Upside Foods is a pioneer in the cultivated meat sector, producing meat directly from animal cells rather than through conventional livestock farming. Founded in 2015 and headquartered in Berkeley, California, the company aims to decouple meat production from animal husbandry, offering a path to more sustainable and humane protein. Its core technology involves proprietary cell culture and differentiation processes, combined with bioreactor systems designed to scale production of structured meat products.

The company's product portfolio includes cultivated chicken in both whole-textured and ground forms, as well as cultivated beef and duck. Upside Foods achieved the first-ever consumer sale of cultivated meat in the United States and received FDA approval for its cultivated chicken in 2021, followed by a full regulatory green light in June 2023. Its cultivated chicken was first served at Bar Crenn, a three-Michelin-star restaurant in San Francisco.

Upside Foods targets foodservice operators, retail consumers, and traditional meat producers seeking sustainable alternatives. The company has raised over $600 million from investors including Temasek, SoftBank Vision Fund 2, Cargill, Tyson Foods, and Bill Gates. Its production capacity is scalable to 50,000 pounds per year, positioning it as a market leader in the nascent cultivated meat industry. Key competitors include Aleph Farms, Mosa Meat, and GOOD Meat.

The company's first-mover advantage and regulatory approvals provide a strategic moat, but the cultivated meat industry faces significant challenges in cost reduction and production scale-up to compete with conventional meat on price. Upside Foods' ability to achieve cost parity and expand its product range across multiple meat types will determine its long-term competitive position.