Startup unravels plastic drawback in hair extensions
Rebundle – a female-led staff that created the primary plant-based hair extension model made in the USA – received Circularity 23 in early June Speed up speedy competitors of round economic system startups.
Ciara Maifounder and CEO of Collect, was the primary of 5 entrepreneurs to handle over 1,200 professionals constructing round financial enterprise fashions. She received the general public vote because of Rebundle’s two-pronged enchantment, declaring from the principle stage: “As a black girl who has worn braids my total life, I acknowledged that not solely (artificial hair plastic) have been a well being drawback, but additionally an environmental justice problem that was uncared for for many years.
The hair extensions market is predicted to nearly double to achieve $11.8 billion by 2030, in line with some projections. The issue Rebundle seeks to unravel is a vital one: 30 million kilos of plastic hair find yourself in landfills yearly.
Rebundle patent pending ReGen hair fiber is constituted of naturally extracted banana fiber. The fabric is 97% natural and compostable, making Rebundle the primary hair extension firm to attain the award USDA certification for bio-based product label. The startup, based mostly in St. Louis, additionally facilitates a recycling program geared toward repurposing plastic hair into out of doors furnishings and decking, diverting it from landfills. With the assistance of its recycling companion 5 MediaRebundle stated it has recycled 445 kilos of hair thus far.
From a well being perspective, Could stated one in three ladies expertise scalp irritation from plastic artificial hair, which comprises endocrine disrupting chemical substances. Rebundle’s banana fiber extensions remove using these toxins, bettering consolation and well being outcomes, in line with Could.
Rebundle was based in 2019 and has raised $2.5 million, not together with the $20,000 it acquired from GreenBiz Group for profitable Circularity Speed up. The startup sells by way of its web site and plans to promote on to salons and big-box retailers.
Different startups that participated in Circularity Speed up embrace Molg (round manufacturing for electronics firms utilizing robotics); Fortuna cools (transforms agricultural waste into insulation and textiles); Samsara Eco (enzymatic degradation of plastics for reuse); And Azure Printed Homes (3D printing of homes with recycled polymers).
This software program helps Siemens, Bayer and Mitsubishi attain their internet zero emissions targets
San Francisco-based software program firm Sinai Applied sciences sells an app that helps firms like Siemens, Mitsubishi and Bayer create a decarbonization technique aligned with science-based targets.
To do that, Sinai’s software program inventories and forecasts emissions throughout an organization’s total operations and worth chain, in line with the corporate’s report. web site.
With Siemens, For instance, Sinai moved the processes of gathering emissions knowledge cataloged in spreadsheets to a cloud-based platform. This allowed Siemens to create a single supply of reality for its greenhouse gasoline emissions knowledge. This, in flip, will assist the corporate make concrete selections to attain its local weather neutrality targets by 2025 and 2030, in line with Sinai.
The corporate has attracted important capital to increase its mission, together with a Collection A funding spherical. $22 million final fall to construct his software program and pursue worldwide partnerships. This funding introduced the full funding for Sinai to $37 million.
NEC, a world chief in superior computing and networking applied sciences, invested on this newest injection by way of its company enterprise capital fund, the NEC Orchestrating Future Fund (NOFF). Sinai is partnership with NEC to offer a complete platform designed to assist companies decarbonize their enterprise operations. By means of this partnership, NEC will mix its knowledge assortment experience with Sinai’s emissions measurement and reporting capabilities. This may allow companions to make holistic suggestions to companies in search of to attain their internet zero emissions targets.
With so many carbon accounting firms in the marketplace, what units Sinai aside is its absolutely built-in carbon footprint calculations, in addition to its capacity to develop customized methods for carbon pricing and general emissions discount of a corporation.
Finance and expertise staff as much as remedy flooding
The price of flooding in the USA quantities to 850 billion {dollars} since 2000, accounting for two-thirds of the price of all pure disasters. Worse nonetheless, most flood injury will not be coated by insurance coverage, thus wiping out 40 p.c of small companies in its wake. The world wants new instruments to anticipate, monitor and handle floods as local weather change makes them extra frequent and widespread.
Enter Flood Base, a sequence based by ladies. A startup revolutionizing the flood insurance coverage and mapping trade for owners, companies and authorities. Floodbase provides knowledge options that reach insurance coverage protection whereas permitting policyholders to obtain funds in close to actual time within the occasion of a triggering occasion (like a pure catastrophe). This mannequin is named parametric insurance coverage. Usually, affected communities obtain funds from insurance coverage firms weeks or months after the catastrophe. This delay hinders speedy entry to financing, which is essential throughout emergency responses to offer communities with meals and clear water, for instance.
Floodbase additionally reinvents the flood mapping course of. Historically, perceive flood patterns and make predictions, massive quantities of floor gear are required to run simulations. Floodbase flips this mannequin on its head, gathering correct knowledge in actual time. As an alternative of simulations, Floodbase trains machine studying instruments to acknowledge water in satellite tv for pc pictures. AI identifies picture pixels that characterize water, capturing real-time flooding the world over, alerting communities for evacuation functions, and finally, correct and well timed insurance coverage funds.
In January, Floodbase raised $12 million in Collection A financing from Lowercarbon Capital with participation from Collaborative Fund, Floating Level and Vidavo. Its shoppers embrace the UN, FEMA and governments all over the world.
Liminal recharges electrical automobile battery manufacturing
In the event you did not know, the electrical automobile (EV) revolution is upon us. Legislative incentives promote the acquisition of electrical automobiles and take away obstacles that beforehand hindered the event of charging infrastructure throughout the nation. And because the demand for electrical automobiles will increase, so does the demand for the manufacturing of electrical vehicle-compatible batteries. That is the place Liminal is available in.
Californian startup Liminal is a battery cell manufacturing intelligence supplier that mixes ultrasound expertise with machine studying to advance data of battery manufacturing. It does this by utilizing EchoStat, a high-speed ultrasonic inspection resolution designed to be used all through the battery manufacturing course of. EchoStat detects and corrects anomalies in actual time, stopping accelerated deterioration or system failure as soon as put in within the EV.
“Our merchandise assist battery producers meet their aggressive manufacturing quantity and value targets, whereas making certain their cells meet the stringent security and efficiency necessities of electrical automobiles” stated CEO and co-founder Andrew Hsieh to Enterprise Insider.
Liminal acquired $17.5 million in its Collection A2 spherical in February, led by ArcTern Ventures with assist from Northvolt and the Ecosystem Integrity Fund. In Could, the startup was reward a $2.75 million grant from the California Vitality Fee to additional develop EchoStat.
