The Engine was among the returning investors for the Rice spinout’s series B round, having previously backed a series A in 2019.
Syzygy Plasmonics, a US-based photocatalyst reactor developer based on research at Rice University, pocketed $23m in a series B round yesterday featuring The Engine, the venture fund backed by Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard University.
Horizons Ventures led the round, which also included Equinor Ventures, the corporate venture capital arm of petroleum company Equinor, Goose Capital and Evok Innovations.
Founded in 2018, Syzygy Plasmonics is working on a reactor that relies on light rather than heat to trigger the chemical reactions needed to manufacture plastics, fuel, fertiliser and hydrogen.
Current methods require fossil fuels and account for 3.6% of global greenhouse gas emissions, the company said. Syzygy’s initial focus is on the production of hydrogen, where it hopes to cut the manufacturing cost in half when compared to alternative methods such as electrolysis.
Syzygy’s technology was invented by co-founders Naomi Halas and Peter Nordlander, professors…
Thierry Heles
Thierry Heles is the editor of Global University Venturing, host of the Beyond the Breakthrough interview podcast and responsible for the monthly GUV Gazette (sign up here for free).
