Kitchener-Waterloo startup Nfinite Nanotech has secured $8.9 million CAD ($6.5 million USD) to help improve the feasibility of sustainable packaging.
“This funding will catalyze our growth, enabling us to scale our operations, enhance our R&D capabilities, and solidify our market position as pioneers in eco-friendly packaging.”
– Nfinite co-founder and CEO Chee Hau Teoh
The seed round was led by the Zurich, Switzerland-based venture capital firm Collateral Good, with participation from FTW Ventures, MaRS IAF, Overlay Capital, Ponderosa, and Republic Capital, as well as $1.5 million in non-dilutive funding from Next Generation Manufacturing Canada. Nfinite said it has raised $8 million USD to date, but declined to disclose if there was a secondary capital component to this round and if anyone was joining its board of directors.
Suzano Ventures, the venture capital arm of Brazilian pulp producer Suzano, also participated as a strategic investor. Suzano Ventures says it invests globally in businesses that are finding innovative uses for planted trees.
Nfinite describes its offering as “paper that performs like plastic.” Its flagship Spatial Atomic Layer Deposition (SALD) technology produces ultra-thin nanocoatings that help sustainable packaging preserve products while maintaining recyclability and compostability.
SALD is a machine that lays down nanocoatings “one atomic layer at a time” at up to 100 times the speed of a conventional ALD, Nfinite claims, adding that its ability to function outside of a vacuum chamber is novel and allows for quick product pilot testing. The technology is typically used in the semiconductor industry and has been adapted for use on packaging, Nfinite co-founder and CTO Jhi Yong Loke said in a YouTube video.
“This funding will catalyze our growth, enabling us to scale our operations, enhance our R&D capabilities, and solidify our market position as pioneers in eco-friendly packaging,” Nfinite co-founder and CEO Chee Hau Teoh said in a statement. “We are committed to leveraging this opportunity to deepen our partnerships with our customers and continue delivering solutions that meet the urgent need for sustainability in our world today.”
RELATED: Friendlier closes $5-million seed extension for reusable packaging solution
Nfinite was founded in 2021 by Teoh and Loke as University of Waterloo students alongside their scientific advisor Kevin Musselman, a professor of mechanical and mechatronics engineering, with the goal of reducing plastic waste globally.
A 2021 report from The United Nations Environment Programme says global plastic production amounts to around 400 million tonnes per year, with an estimated 12 percent of produced plastics being incinerated and only an estimated 9 percent being recycled. The report claims that plastic waste in aquatic ecosystems is expected to nearly triple if no action is taken, going from around 11 million tonnes in 2016 to around 29 million tonnes in 2040.
Nfinite said its solution hasn’t gone to market yet, and that it’s currently working with PepsiCo, Mitsubishi, and consumer packaging giant Amcor. In 2022, Nfinite won $250,000 USD from Amcor Lift-Off, a seed funding initiative that later led to a joint research project agreement between Nfinite and Amcor to validate the nanocoating technology.
Nfinite has been recognized recently. Teoh was named on the Forbes 30 under 30 social impact list in November 2023, with Nfinite later being named on the Canadian Innovation Exchange’s (CIX) list of top 20 early-stage startups.
Feature image courtesy of Nfinite.
