Solena Materials lands $6.7M seed round to produce protein fibers at scale

In the UK, Solena Materials has raised $6.7 million (£5.1 million) in seed funding, following a $4.1 million (£3.1 million) pre-seed funding round in 2022, that it will use to produce protein fibers at scale. The company uses AI techniques to custom-design fibers at the molecular level which are then produced using engineered microbes. Its AI techniques allow it to optimize performance characteristics of the fibers such as appearance, hand-feel and tensile strength, and could result in new and higher performing fashion, sports apparel, and technical textiles.

Because the microbes used to produce the fibers use renewable feedstocks, the company’s fibers could also potentially be produced at a lower environmental cost than synthetic textiles made from petroleum and resource-intensive natural fibers. The fibers are also biodegradable, unlike traditional synthetic fibers such as polyester.