Australian National University (ANU) backed enviro-tech startup, Samsara Eco, has raised $54 million in a Series A funding round as it prepares to scale infinite recycling.
Samsara Eco’s ground-breaking technology creates ‘infinite recycling’, using enzymes to break plastic down to its core building blocks, which can then be used to recreate brand-new, virgin-quality plastic, again and again.
The new capital comes as Samsara Eco sets its sight on building its first plastic recycling facility later this year ahead of full-scale production in 2023. This will allow Samsara to recycle a massive 20,000 tonnes of plastic a year from 2024.
Samsara’s new investors include Breakthrough Victoria, Temasek, Assembly Climate Capital, DCVC and INP Capital. Other co-investors in the Series A funding round include founding and returning investors – Main Sequence, Woolworths Group and Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC) Innovation Fund, managed by Virescent Ventures.
The capital round is also being used to grow the company’s engineering team and develop its library of plastic-eating enzymes. Samsara is also looking into expanding its operations into Europe and North America.
Samsara launched in 2021 in partnership with ANU, having developed a new way to infinitely recycle plastic to help end the plastic pollution crisis.
“Plastic is one of the greatest inventions of the 20th century and provides enormous utility because of its durability, flexibility and strength,” said Paul Riley, CEO and founder of Samsara.
“Yet, plastic is an environmental disaster, with almost every piece of the nine billion tonnes ever made still on the planet.”
Instead of mining for fossil fuels to create new plastic or relying on current recycling methods which result in less than 10 per cent of plastic waste actually being recycled, Samsara takes plastic that already exists to infinitely recycle it.
ANU vice-chancellor Professor Brian Schmidt said Samara is an example of the power of research-powered innovation.
“It will take a real team effort to turn the tide on plastic pollution – and that’s exactly what we’re seeing with Samara and its investors,” he said.
“I’m proud ANU is a driving force behind Samsara, bringing to life technology that can have real impact in the world.”
W23 managing director, Ingrid Maes said Samsara is at the forefront of recycling. “We’re excited about the potential of Samsara and its ambitious plans, which have the power to positively disrupt the role of plastics in supermarkets and retail environments.”
“You can’t solve the climate crisis unless you solve the plastics crisis. Unlike other alternative recycling practices, our process is economical, with a low carbon footprint and allows for the effective recycling of challenging plastics including coloured, multi-layered or mixed plastics and textiles. Our technology means we have enough plastic in the world already and with our technology you never need to produce plastic from fossil fuels again,” Riley added.
As it gears up for commercialisation, Samsara is working alongside its first partner, Woolworths Group, to bring the potential of infinite recycling to supermarket shelves.
The first enzymatically recycled packaging is set to be launched in Woolworths next year, serving a key milestone for Samsara’s roadmap to recycling 1.5 million tonnes of plastic per annum by 2030.
Around the world, legislators have set increasingly high standards to mandate a move towards plastic waste reduction. Geopolitical and social forces are aligning to put pressure on governments and corporations to tackle the plastics problem, and now technology innovation is serving a solution for effective plastic recycling management.
“Every minute of the day, the equivalent of a garbage truck full of plastic ends up in our oceans. By 2050, the volume of plastic by weight will exceed fish in the sea,” Riley explained.
“We’ve had fantastic growth so far, but the plastic problem is growing faster. Access to this funding will enable us to accelerate the capabilities of infinite recycling and scale our technology which breaks down plastics in minutes, not centuries.”
Learn more about Samsara Eco here.