SAN LEANDRO, Calif. — January 16, 2024 — ZymoChem, creator of a carbon-efficient bio-manufacturing platform, closed a $21 million Series A round. The investment is led by Breakout Ventures with participation from new investors including lululemon athletica inc. and Toyota Ventures, and existing investors including GS Futures, KdT Ventures, and Cavallo Ventures. By pairing this financing with existing revenues from commercial partnerships and funding from the U.S. Department of Energy, ZymoChem will launch its first high-performance material and advance its first partnered product to commercial scale.
To help address the climate crisis, ZymoChem rethinks how everyday products, from personal hygiene items to textiles, are produced. ZymoChem redesigns manufacturing with products that do not come from fossil fuels, require carbon-intensive production, or persist for generations. Improving sustainability within manufacturing via ZymoChem’s patented technology is what interested Toyota Ventures. ZymoChem’s approach also aligns well with lululemon’s goal of improving sustainability within its product portfolio.
Harshal Chokhawalla
Harshal Chokhawala, Co-Founder and CEO
“We’re upending the materials industry,” said Harshal Chokhawala, co-founder and CEO. “Our technology delivers sustainability without compromising performance, scale, and importantly economics. This unlock already catalyzed multiple partnerships with world-leading companies and we’re thrilled to expand our impact with our key stakeholders.”
ZymoChem accelerates a real-zero economy by relieving carbon emissions in product development, use, and end of life through:
- Platform Approach: Converting renewable feedstocks into a variety of high-performance, bio-based, biodegradable polymers.
- Patented, Carbon-Efficient Bio-manufacturing: Creating materials with near-zero CO2 emissions via a proprietary fermentation process.
- Superior Economics: Improving yield by up to 50% versus alternative processes, creating a dramatic cost advantage.
- Visionary Partnerships: Promoting benefits of bio-based manufacturing by partnering with stakeholders across the value chain with drop-in solutions for their existing infrastructure.
“ZymoChem has the most compelling technology we’ve seen to scale bio-based chemicals and materials while remaining cost competitive with petroleum-derived products,” said Lindy Fishburne, managing partner at Breakout.
Posted: January 16, 2024
Source: ZymoChem
