US' Rubi Laboratories raises $4.5 million seed funding

The round was led by Talis Capital and Necessary Ventures, with participation from Climactic, Collaborative Fund, Plug and Play, Incite Ventures, Darco Capital, Cayuse Partners, Axial VC, Climate Capital Collective, and CapitalX. A number of industry leaders joined as angels, including James Reinhart, CEO and founder of thredUP; Manny Mashouf, CEO and founder of Bebe Stores; Nicolaj Reffstrup, founder of GANNI; Alexander Lorestanti, CEO and co-founder of Geltor; and Rei Wang, co-founder of The Grand and former CEO of Dorm Room Fund.

Founded in 2020 by Neeka and Leila Mashouf, Rubi Laboratories is pioneering the creation of carbon negative cellulosic textiles through its patent-pending, cell-free biocatalytic process, starting with viscose. To do this, Rubi captures CO2 from the waste streams of manufacturing facilities using its proprietary enzyme system which can capture and convert CO2 from a gas input at any concentration. The CO2 is then converted into cellulose, which can then be used to create viscose-based yarn. By utilising enzymes as the catalyst, Rubi is able to turn 100 per cent of CO2 inputted to the end product with zero waste.

While Rubi will initially focus on the fashion market, the company's longer-term plans include applying the same technology to other industries such as food, packaging and building materials, Talis Capital said in a press release.

The company has raised funding at a critical moment in time for the fashion industry as major brands set ambitious targets to zero carbon, or carbon reduction goals, by 2030. Overall, the fashion industry is the third-most CO2-polluting supply chain in the world, with the majority of emissions coming from the textile supply chain. Even though today’s viscose and cotton textiles come from plants, their processing and manufacturing contribute over 10kg of CO2 per kg of textile.

Rubi’s technology enables its textiles to be net carbon-negative per kg of textile. There's immense market pressure on fashion companies to become more sustainable: at least 60 per cent of fashion customers are demanding sustainable choices, meaning that the industry could see a $52 bn profit reduction by 2030 if no action is taken. The most prevalent issue for these brands is sourcing carbon-free materials that can be scaled to meet production, and at price parity: 200 major fashion retailers are already paying a premium for organic cotton.

"We're at a pivotal moment in time where mature modern technologies and advances in biotech can meet to build a world where human prosperity and economic growth are planet-positive. With increased consumer and government pressure to solve fashion’s reliance on carbon-heavy textiles, innovation in textiles can have a dramatic impact on reducing fashion’s carbon emissions. In turn, we’re seeing brands demonstrating a willingness to pay a premium for these materials - as long as there’s a tangible line of sight to reach price parity with traditional materials eventually - both because they know it will drive costs down in the longer term, but also because it supports them in terms of achieving their sustainability goals. We’re excited to partner with Talis, Necessary Ventures and influential funds and angels in this space to bring Rubi’s vision to commercialisation,” Neeka Mashouf, CEO and co-founder of Rubi Laboratories, said.

“As opposed to the great venture stories of the last decade, we believe that the next trillion-dollar companies in this space won’t be creating new markets like Airbnb and Uber did, but instead will replace existing trillion-dollar markets with better, cheaper and cleaner sustainable alternatives. We strongly believe that Neeka and Leila’s unique combined experience in scientific academia, product and retail will enable Rubi to become a winner in this space. We’re looking forward to seeing how this capital can supercharge the next phase of their journey and we’re delighted to be a part of it,” Cecilia Manduca, associate at Talis Capital, said.

“Neeka and Leila are building something the world truly needs. More sustainable, affordable, and logistically flexible supply chains are top of mind across many industries. This is something we've experienced with Solugen in the chemicals industry. With Rubi and textiles, there's also a palpable response from consumers taking up the climate fight, which is driving excitement in the fashion and apparel industry. Even the videos the team has put out on TikTok are generating strong engagement in just a couple weeks of testing. They've already begun attracting great talent and inbound interest, and I'm proud to be supporting them on this important mission," Neil Devani, managing director at Necessary Ventures, said.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (RR)