What does Distynct do?

Distynct sells smart barn alarms and feed inventory monitoring for livestock producers, with 24/7 remote alerts via a mobile app.

Who founded Distynct?

Distynct was founded by BJ Brugman in 2021.

Who are Distynct's investors?

Distynct's investors include Ag Ventures Alliance, Innoventures Iowa, ISA Ventures, Next Level Ventures.

How much funding has Distynct raised?

Distynct has disclosed $2.1M raised across 3 rounds.

Where is Distynct headquartered?

Distynct is headquartered in Ames, US.

Distynct

Ames, US · Founded 2021 · Delaware corporation · 13 employees on LinkedIn · 4 known investors

Find your way into Distynct

168 people in our graph share verified history with the Distynct team — schools, employers, funds. One of them is your warm intro.

Keren Gottliebunlockedknows BJ Brugman · together at Indiana University Bloomington (overlapped)

×5knows the team · via Indiana University Bloomington

knows the team · via Purdue University Daniels School of Business

×2knows the team · via Elanco

×3knows the team · via Iowa State University

Distynct offers the Barn Alarm, a device that gives farmers remote visibility of their farm operations without installing new wires or probes. It targets agricultural users seeking reliable and low-cost monitoring.

Also known as Distynct

AgTech Hardware IoT

Founders & leadership

Distynct was founded in 2021 by BJ Brugman.

BJ Brugman inFounder & CEOHe previously worked in corporate sales in the animal pharmaceuticals industry and holds a Master's degree in Agricultural Economics from Purdue University's Krannert School of Management and an MBA from Indiana University's Kelly School of Business.

Bradly J BrugmanExecutive

Board

Justin Van WertBoard director

Ben WilliamsonBoard director

Investors · 4

Ag Ventures Alliance

Innoventures IowaIowa

ISA VenturesCedar Rapids · $25K – $1M

Next Level VenturesDes Moines · $500K – $5M

Reported raises · per SEC filings

Form D private placements

$2.1M disclosed across 3 rounds · 2022–2024

▶$1.1MraisedJul 2024 · 12 investors · Other Technology

Rule 506(b)

Officers, directors & promoters on the filing

Bradly J BrugmanExecutive Officer, Director
Justin Van WertDirector
Ben WilliamsonDirector

Offering amount: $1.5M
Amount sold: $1.1M
Minimum investment: $5K
First sale: Jun 2024
Incorporated: Corporation, Delaware, 2021
Federal exemptions: 06b

Full filing on SEC EDGAR ↗

▶$400KraisedApr 2023 · 1 investors · Other Technology

Rule 506(b)

Officers, directors & promoters on the filing

Ben WilliamsonDirector
Justin Van WertDirector
Bradly J BrugmanExecutive Officer, Director

Offering amount: $1M
Amount sold: $400K
Minimum investment: $10K
First sale: Apr 2023
Incorporated: Corporation, Delaware, 2021
Federal exemptions: 06b

Full filing on SEC EDGAR ↗

▶$650KraisedSep 2022 · 6 investors · Other Technology

Rule 506(b)

Officers, directors & promoters on the filing

Bradly J. BrugmanExecutive Officer, Director

Offering amount: $1M
Amount sold: $650K
Minimum investment: $50K
First sale: Sep 2022
Incorporated: Corporation, Delaware, 2021
Federal exemptions: 06b

Full filing on SEC EDGAR ↗

Source: SEC EDGAR Form D. Amounts as filed; amended filings shown once at their latest values.

Company profile

researched Aug 2026

Distynct is an agricultural technology company that produces a smart barn alarm system for livestock operations. The product provides 24/7/365 remote monitoring of barn conditions, delivering alerts to producers through a mobile application so that they can judge the urgency of an alarm and decide whether an on-site visit is required. The company positions the system as a replacement for older, outdated barn alarm equipment.

Alongside alarms, Distynct offers a feed inventory monitoring capability aimed at reducing feed outages and feed emergencies and improving feed mill efficiency. Company messaging emphasizes reliability, ease of use for non-technical operators, readable graphs and charts, and scalability across multiple barns, with remote configuration so staff do not need to visit each barn to set up the system.

Business model

Distynct sells barn alarm hardware and monitoring packages directly to farm operators, including upgrade packages for existing outdated alarms advertised from $2,500, with quotes provided on request.

Traction

Customer testimonials from farm operators in Iowa and Minnesota describe using the system to manage alarms remotely and prioritize staff response.

▸Full profile — market position, technology, go-to-market, geography

Market position

Provider of barn alarm and feed monitoring systems for livestock producers in the US Midwest.

Positioned around alarm reliability, simplicity for non-technical users, remote setup and management across barns, and a feed inventory monitoring offering described as scalable.

Technology

A smart barn alarm platform combining in-barn monitoring hardware with continuous remote monitoring and a mobile app that provides alerts with context and urgency, remote alarm configuration, and graphical data views, plus a scalable feed inventory monitoring solution.

Go-to-market

Direct sales via the company website through quote requests and published pricing, supported by customer testimonials and explanatory videos from the founder and CEO.

Livestock producers, particularly pig barn operators and farm teams managing multiple barn sites; customer testimonials reference users in Iowa and Minnesota.

Geography

Based in Ames, United States, with customers referenced in Iowa and Minnesota.

Compiled by commissioned research from 1 cited public sources — announcements, filings, and press listed under research sources below.

Competitors · 2

by search overlap

Hedepy6 shared keywordsHedepy offers online psychotherapy services, presenting therapy as a tool to help managers and leaders understand internal conflicts, improve self-awareness, and develop leadership skills. The page focuses on the mental health and wellness needs of company managers and leaders.

Huffpost5 shared keywordsThis is a HuffPost shopping article—an editorial affiliate roundup listing products for people who sweat, not a company's own website. It is a media/publisher page rather than a startup or product company site.

Companies competing with Distynct for the same Google search keywords, organic and paid, via search-intersection analysis.

Legal entities · 1

corporate structure

DistynctDelaware

▸Research sources · 1

primary sources listed

Distynctgetdistynct.com · web

1 public sources were cited for this profile; the first-party ones are listed here.

Frequently asked questions

What does Distynct do?: Distynct sells smart barn alarms and feed inventory monitoring for livestock producers, with 24/7 remote alerts via a mobile app.
Who founded Distynct?: Distynct was founded by BJ Brugman in 2021.
Who are Distynct's investors?: Distynct's investors include Ag Ventures Alliance, Innoventures Iowa, ISA Ventures, Next Level Ventures.
How much funding has Distynct raised?: Distynct has disclosed $2.1M raised across 3 rounds.
Where is Distynct headquartered?: Distynct is headquartered in Ames, US.