être’s portfolio company Hexas Biomass is Shell GameChanger.
The annual Shell GameChanger Accelerator™ Powered by NREL (GCxN) — a multi-million dollar, multi-year program developed in collaboration between Shell GameChanger and the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) — has selected four startups to participate in the program’s sixth cohort.
GCxN provides promising early-stage cleantech startups with access to technical experts and state-of-the-art facilities to reduce the risk of technology development and accelerate commercialization of new cleaner technologies.
The selected startups are focused on developing innovative technologies that sequester carbon into building materials and convert waste and/or bio-renewable feedstocks to desired energy and chemical products. The startups are referred by Channel Partners, an extensive ecosystem of cleantech business incubators, accelerators, and universities, with finalists undergoing review by technology experts as well as NREL and Shell representatives. Invited companies are provided access to $250,000 each in non-dilutive funding to conduct technical assistance projects.
The sixth GCxN cohort includes:
DTE Materials, based in Fresno, CA, has developed a technology that converts agricultural and forest waste into sustainable, carbon-negative construction materials. GCxN will assist DTE Materials with a thorough life cycle analysis considering procurement, conversion of biomass, manufacturing, implementation, and disposal, as well as using NREL’s steam explosion reactor to produce bio-aggregates using DTE’s feedstock materials.
Hexas Biomass, based in Olympia, WA, has created a nature-based alternative for wood, food crop, and fossil fuel-based feedstocks for biofuel production. GCxN will support Hexas Biomass with feedstock treatment and conversion to sugars and lipids leveraging NREL’s Integrated Biorefinery Facility and fermentation systems.
Invizyne Technologies, based in Monrovia, CA, is a cell-free enzyme platform that enhances biomass conversions, vastly improving the economics of bio-based chemical production. GCxN will enable researchers to evaluate various separations approaches to enhance product throughput as well as conduct techno-economic and life cycle analysis modeling of Invizyne Technologies’ production process.
ZILA BioWorks, based in Renton, WA, has developed a bio-epoxy resin from hemp seed oil that has a 60% smaller carbon footprint in comparison to petroleum-based epoxies. GCxN will help ZILA BioWorks determine the suitability of formulations for thicker and larger sections of wind turbine blades and perform mechanical, load-frame testing to characterize the strength of Zila BioWorks’ bio-resin relative to existing industry resins.
“Tackling the climate challenge requires multifaceted solutions. At Shell, we believe technology that removes carbon dioxide from the atmosphere will be essential for lowering emissions from energy and chemical products,” said Yesim Jonsson, Shell’s GCxN program manager. “The companies in GCxN's sixth cohort embody these objectives and have the potential to usher in a more sustainable future.”
The sixth cohort brings GCxN to a total of 23 portfolio companies across various technology sectors and stages since the program began in 2018. The portfolio companies have collectively raised over $317 million since joining the program, translating to a leverage ratio of $67 raised for every dollar of Shell project funding.
Read the full press release.
How être got to know Hexas:
être's relationship with Hexas Biomass demonstrates our hands-on approach to bringing technologies to market. Managing partner Hillary Talbot met Hexas founder Wendy Owens when Hillary presented on equity crowdfunding at the Water Energy Technology Center (WET) at Cal State Fresno. Wendy later participated in être’s course, “Venture Capital 101 for Women,” building her understanding of what venture capitalists expect from a pitch and why it’s beneficial to both the founder and the entrepreneur to correctly value a startup, among numerous other practical topics.
Following the class, être became an advisor to Wendy and she was introduced to être's network. Industry veterans in être's venture capital ecosystem provided feedback on Hexas’s pitch deck, and when Wendy was ready for a check, être was the first money in. Historically, VCs and entrepreneurs built relationships and developed trust over time — then, when a check is needed, it can happen quickly. être deployed the funds to Hexas in less than a week.