Steve Mantle is the founder of innov8.ag, a Walla Walla, Washington-based agtech startup and Microsoft-partnered company. Prior to embarking on the startup, Mantle spent 12 years at Microsoft where he most recently focused on Microsoft’s fastest growing product line, Azure Cloud. His leadership skills contributed to growing Azure from a $100M to a $10B+/year business over six years. After working at the Microsoft headquarters in Seattle, Mantle relocated his family to Walla Walla in the summer of 2018. He sees this location as the perfect base for ag startups, given the convergence of progressive farmers and three colleges with strengths in agriculture, engineering, science, as well as established ag manufacturers, strong connectivity providers and a highly collaborative business climate. An Australian by birth, Mantle earned an MBA from the University of Washington.