Leading Transformation with Curiosity: The Vivid Vision of Jenny Lemieux
tl;dr
Jenny Lemieux, co-founder of Vivid Machines, is using computer vision to revolutionize agriculture with real-time, AI-ready data.
Her leadership style is built on curiosity, learning, and empowering her team to grow through mistakes.
Even amidst the fast-paced demands of startup life and the hurdles of fundraising, Jenny remains driven by impact, resilience, and a bold belief in success.
Jenny Lemieux didn’t set out to create just another tech company. She wanted to build something audacious, something real, impactful, and wildly useful in the unpredictable terrain of the real world. That mission took root in Vivid Machines, the ag-tech startup she co-founded, and it continues to grow with every orchard scanned and dataset built.
A Leadership Style Rooted in Curiosity and Learning
From day one, Jenny and her co-founder, Jonathan defined Vivid Machines’ values: curiosity, learning, and agency. “Since they were important for us, we felt that they should be important to the team we would recruit and lead.” At Vivid Machines, they reinforce that they want the team to own their decisions, and if someone makes a mistake, that’s okay. “It’s how we learn.” And in a startup where things change quickly, learning is foundational.
Jenny’s leadership goes beyond structure and process. She leads with empathy and appreciation, recognizing that the startup journey is “just as much about the people as the product.”
Breaking Stereotypes in Tech
Interestingly, Jenny doesn’t attribute any challenges she’s faced to being a woman in tech. “I truly don’t think I’ve experienced challenges because I’m a woman. I think respect is key – both giving it and earning it.” She reflects on a long career where she learned “enough to be dangerous in all aspects of a highly technical business.” Just as important, she adds, is knowing when to ask for help. “I think knowing your own limits helps build respect.”
One of the bigger challenges? “Perfectionism. I want everything to be perfect – and in a start-up, it never will be.” She works on managing expectations—her own and her customers’—and reminding herself that despite any flaws, what they’ve built is incredible.
Solving Agriculture’s Data Drought
Jenny considers Vivid Machines as solving a problem in agriculture, using technology. They’ve built an easy-to-use computer vision system that delivers real-time predictions, even in environments with no connectivity. The north star? “How can we make this easy to use anywhere, by anyone, to solve massive problems in agriculture such as directing precision and automation to reduce farm labor (which is currently scarce and expensive), increase fruit quality (reducing food loss and increasing farm profitability), and reduce impacts on soil and water (through precision).”
Before systems like theirs, there was no dataset that existed for outdoor fruit and vegetable production because the environments are so complex: “no standard planting style, limited connectivity, dusty, hot, cold, wet, rough… you get the picture.” And without data, there’s no AI. Vivid Machines is now building the dataset to make AI possible for fruit and vegetable farms, thanks to a stable and easy-to-use computer vision system.
Hiring for Heart, Not Just Hard Skills
“We hire based on values. We look for people who are curious and looking to solve big problems.” Jenny wants people who aim to make a positive impact, are accountable, and value agency in their roles. While ideal candidates have the foundation to be leaders in their domain—engineering, machine learning, customer success— passion and the ability to learn are as fundamental as hard skills in a constantly evolving startup.
Facing the Fundraising Frenzy
Fundraising, Jenny admits, is stressful. “This thing that you built is dependent on whether you can raise the funds to have it continue – and everything always takes longer than you think.”
She notes that the idea of being “default alive” isn’t practical for hardware or deep tech startups aiming for venture scale. The R&D costs are simply too high. “Sure, you can fire everyone and scale back, but then you can’t deliver in time for it to matter. So you just have to go for it.”
To cope, she mentally reframed their recent fundraising efforts: “What I’ve done is mentally framed our most recent fundraising efforts as free advice. When I hear the same feedback from multiple VCs, I know I’m missing something. And I use that as an opportunity to make the business better. Which improves the next conversations.”
It also forced her to work on the business as much as in it. “We’ll be a much better company having had feedback from dozens of VCs who see a lot of companies like ours.”
And perhaps the most important mindset shift? “Fix the idea that you WILL be successful. There’s no point in believing anything else.”
Looking Ahead to a Fruitful Future
Looking ahead, Jenny envisions Vivid Machines as “the dataset powering all fruit and vegetable production.” She’s excited about the future of robotics and automation on farms and sees today’s technologies converging into a holistic platform to make farming more sustainable and profitable.
Words of Wisdom for Future Tech Leaders
For women aspiring to lead in tech—or anyone, really—Jenny’s advice is practical and empowering: “Be curious – truly learn and experience customer pain points, but also spend the time learning the technical side of what you’re building. You’ll feel more confident leading the team, and be able to envision many more opportunities.”
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