Interview with Gentian: AI-driven Satellite Imagery Analysis for Biodiversity Mapping
Nature-related risks are rising up the regulatory and strategic agenda. From urban greening to peatland restoration, the ability to detect, assess, and act on ecological data is becoming essential, not just for conservation, but for compliance, resilience, and financial decision-making.
Enter Gentian. This nature tech startup is reimagining biodiversity intelligence by fusing high-resolution satellite imagery with bespoke AI models, purpose-built for ecological insight. With a platform aligned to TNFD, BNG, and CSRD, Gentian transforms fragmented data into high-frequency, high-credibility biodiversity maps that organizations can actually use.
In this Ask the Expert interview, we spoke with the founding team at Gentian about why better biodiversity data is urgently needed, how they’re scaling ecological intelligence, and what it means to operationalize nature-positive strategy in a world of accelerating environmental change
Q: What’s the story behind Gentian?
Gentian was founded by Daniel White, Dusty Gedge, Thomas Fenal, and Karen Day, each deeply passionate about nature. Daniel’s early fascination with nature sparked his lifelong commitment to ecology; Dusty’s advocacy for urban biodiversity (in particular green roofs in London) highlighted the importance of overlooked ecosystems; Thomas’ extensive experience in satellite engineering brought precision technology to ecological challenges; and Karen’s passion for teaching and environmental stewardship rounded out the team’s mission-driven approach.
Initially focused on urban environments, Gentian quickly evolved to provide comprehensive biodiversity intelligence globally, driven by escalating demand for accurate, actionable ecological insights.
Gentian’s founders: Daniel White, Dusty Gedge, Thomas Fenal, and Karen Day
Q: Tell us about the core challenges Gentian is working to solve.
Traditional biodiversity mapping and monitoring methods often rely heavily on field surveys which can be time-consuming, costly, and difficult to scale. They lack comprehensive coverage, often miss smaller or inaccessible areas, and yield data that quickly becomes outdated. Without timely, precise insights, organisations cannot make informed decisions about conservation, compliance, and climate resilience. This poses severe risks for nature-related reporting and sustainable decision-making.
Gentian addresses these limitations through advanced AI-driven satellite imagery analysis, rapidly generating high-resolution biodiversity insights. Ecological intelligence is critical now, as pressures on natural systems accelerate and global biodiversity reporting frameworks such as BNG, TNFD or CSRD become mandatory, demanding more frequent, reliable, and accurate data.
Q: In your view, what are the biggest barriers to scaling biodiversity intelligence?
What stands in the way of widespread adoption of advanced biodiversity analytics, from data availability and standardization to integration with financial and regulatory systems?
The primary barriers include inconsistent data standards, fragmented data availability, and challenges in integrating ecological data into financial and regulatory systems. Without global standardisation, data becomes difficult to compare and utilise broadly. Another significant challenge is connecting biodiversity data to existing ESG and financial frameworks, which requires clear communication of ecological insights in terms stakeholders can effectively interpret and apply.
We are working to overcome these by providing easy-to-integrate, transparent data aligned with key global frameworks such as BNG, TNFD and CSRD. Our platform simplifies the complexity of ecological data, making biodiversity insights actionable and understandable for diverse stakeholders.
Q: Can you share an overview of Gentian and the work you do?
Gentian empowers organisations with advanced tools to understand and act on biodiversity insights by leveraging AI and very high-resolution satellite imagery. Our primary audience includes environmental consultancies, large corporations needing biodiversity compliance (like TNFD and CSRD), and public authorities.
What sets Gentian apart is our ability to rapidly deliver detailed, actionable biodiversity data at scale, using bespoke machine learning models trained specifically for ecological applications. Our alignment with frameworks such as TNFD, CSRD, and SBTN ensures our data seamlessly integrates into sustainability reporting and decision-making processes.
Q: Can you share one or two favorite success stories so far?
A standout success story is Gentian’s partnership with Scottish Power, where we used our high-resolution mapping tools for detailed peatland assessments. This allowed targeted conservation efforts, enhancing carbon sequestration and biodiversity restoration outcomes while saving time and money.
Another milestone was working with Lewisham Council in London to map urban green infrastructure in detail across the whole of the borough, significantly improving their climate resilience strategy and enhancing local biodiversity through informed green-space planning.
Q: How do you see Gentian fitting into the broader nature tech movement?
Gentian plays a pivotal role in the nature tech ecosystem by providing critical biodiversity infrastructure. Namely, accurate, fast and scalable ecological data for informed decisions. Our data bridges ecological science and regulatory reporting, accelerating the transition to a nature-positive economy. We actively collaborate across sectors, partnering with financial institutions, sustainability experts, and other technology innovators, contributing to a shared global vision for enhanced ecological stewardship.
Q: What brought you to the Nature Tech Collective?
Joining the Nature Tech Collective aligns perfectly with our belief in collaborative innovation. We value this community’s potential to amplify our collective impact through shared knowledge, partnerships, and advocacy. By participating, we aim to foster relationships that advance standardisation in biodiversity analytics, drive wider adoption of ecological intelligence tools, and contribute to shaping policies that protect natural capital.
Q: How can others best support your work?
Gentian welcomes support through strategic partnerships, collaborative research bids, increased awareness, and investment in scaling our platform globally. Particularly valuable are partnerships with ESG-focused corporations and consultancies that can integrate our ecological insights into mainstream decision-making processes. We also seek talented individuals passionate about nature and technology to join our growing team.
Q: What’s next for Gentian?
Gentian is currently focused on extending our global presence, continuously enhancing our platform’s capabilities, and deepening alignment with emerging regulatory frameworks. Our roadmap includes broadening our mapping capabilities to encompass a wider variety of habitat types and developing tailored reporting tools that align closely with evolving biodiversity disclosure standards and specific client use cases. Ultimately, Gentian aims to set the global benchmark in biodiversity intelligence, significantly advancing worldwide efforts in biodiversity restoration and climate resilience.
Please visit our website at www.gentian.io to learn more about our mission and stay informed on our ever evolving journey as well as the latest innovations, insights, and opportunities in biodiversity intelligence by signing up for our newsletter at gentian.io/newsletter.
