Built for the intersection of rangeland science and practical conservation work.
We combine spectroscopy, remote sensing, and domain knowledge to help clients map, measure, and document what is happening on the land.
Our mission
Zubr Technologies turns rangeland imagery into grazing, forage, and treatment decisions. Founded in Montana in 2025 out of an effort to map the invasive annual grass ventenata, we build the field-validated bridge from hyperspectral remote sensing to the numbers land managers actually use.
Our durable asset is a proprietary, community-stratified calibration dataset, along with the workflow that carries forage-chemistry signals from bench measurements to UAV imagery to satellite reflectance. We sell finished reports and decision tools as a service to the advisors, districts, and cooperatives that manage western working lands.
People
A small team pairing remote sensing and machine learning with rangeland field science and optical engineering.
Rustin
Rustin Bielski
Founder & Principal Investigator
Leads project execution, the calibration and modeling pipeline, and the company's product and commercialization direction. Background in ecology, remote sensing, and data science, with prior spectral analysis of invasive plants. Completed the NSF I-Corps Great Plains program in 2026.
Jessica
Dr. Jessica Mitchell
Co-Principal Investigator, UM Spatial Analysis Lab
Leads the Spatial Analysis Lab at the University of Montana, with experience mapping ventenata probability across millions of acres. Directs field calibration and validation and helps develop the chemometric models behind our forage-quality products.
Partners & collaborators
Zubr is the small-business lead of an NSF STTR team with complementary, non-overlapping roles.
UM Spatial Analysis Lab
University of Montana. Repeat field collection, calibration, and validation.
MSU Optical Technology Center (OpTeC)
Montana State University. Instrumentation, signal processing, and optical engineering.
MSU Hyperspectral & Lidar
UAV hyperspectral and lidar sensing assets for outdoor field trials.
MT Headwaters Tech Hub
Commercialization guidance and test-bed access for field trials.
Waters Agricultural Laboratories
Reference laboratory chemistry (silica, nitrogen, fiber) under subcontract.
NSF STTR
Non-dilutive support for the Phase I research behind our calibration engine.
Our vision
To become the standard, field-validated decision layer that turns rangeland imagery into grazing, forage, and treatment decisions.
Data that supports decisions
From UAV maps to forage reports, outputs are designed around how clients actually use information, not how it looks in a demo.
Technology that earns trust
Calibrated, validated, and documented, with per-pixel uncertainty, so results hold up in program applications, not just internal notes.
An asset that compounds
One engine, one growing calibration dataset across regions, seasons, and drought years, so every new customer strengthens the service for the rest.
What we stand for
Testable milestones
Clear targets and go/no-go criteria guide progress.
Field-first design
Deliverables are designed around real field constraints, not lab ideals or marketing specs.
Impact-driven
We focus on tools and data that help reduce invasive species pressure, protect intact rangeland, and make conservation programs more effective.
Want to work together?
We are looking for program partners, pilot engagements, and long-term collaborators.
Get in touch