Scaling through friction: Learning, trust, and institutional alignment in global AgTech

CONTEXT Agri-technology (AgTech) ventures are often portrayed as globally scalable solutions for transforming food systems, yet agriculture differs from other technology domains in its dependence on local ecological, institutional, and social contexts. Standard internationalization models - such as born global and international new ventures -assume scalability through replication, but AgTech ventures must engage with diversity, not overcome it. OBJECTIVE This study introduces the concept of context-responsive scaling to explain how AgTech ventures expand across heterogeneous agricultural systems. It explores how firms convert ecological and institutional friction into learning and legitimacy, proposing a framework that connects firm-level adaptation with responsible and transformative scaling in food systems. METHODS The research draws on 48 semi-structured interviews with AgTech founders, investors, and ecosystem actors across Asia, Africa, Latin America, and Europe, complemented by field notes and documentary evidence. Using grounded theorizing, it identifies recurrent practices through which firms translate technologies, build trust, and co-shape institutional environments. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS AgTech ventures scale not by removing friction but by learning through it. They develop three interlinked dynamic capabilities: contextual translation (making technology meaningful in local farming logics), relational intermediation (building legitimacy through trusted intermediaries), and institutional co-shaping (engaging in rule-making and alignment with public goals). These capabilities enable distributed learning systems that reconcile global coherence with local embeddedness. SIGNIFICANCE The study reframes scaling as an interpretive, relational, and ethical process. It conceptualizes embeddedness as a dynamic capability and connects organizational learning to system transformation. For practice, it calls for scaling programs that reward co-creation, partnership depth, and institutional learning rather than rapid replication. Scaling through friction thus represents a transformative pathway for more resilient and inclusive agri-food innovation.