Possible Ventures invests in Provectus Algae

The rise of Synthetic Biology (SynBio) is driving a reinvention of the primary methods of product manufacturing. Spurred on by rising consumer demand for sustainable products and practices, industry leaders have begun looking for ways to leverage the power of biology to grow new materials.

As a result, the global bioeconomy is taking off as manufacturers switch to growing their own high-performance, sustainable products. A recent Mckinsey report suggests that Synthetic Biology “could have a direct global impact of up to $4 trillion per year over the next 10-20 years” and Forbes reports that synthetic biology startups raised $3bn in the first half of 2020.

Our planet's natural resources are increasingly scarce and many of our traditional production processes have proven to be toxic. We must transition to sustainable methods of producing the goods and materials required to support human life.

While leading SynBio companies, like Gingko Bioworks and Zymergen, utilise yeast and bacteria in their production processes, Provectus Algae stands out from the crowd by using algae as the base of its bio-manufacturing. Microalgae is the worlds oldest microbe, with a 3.5 billion year head start in producing valuable molecules from the abundant resources of light and CO2. Harnessing these resources in their 'precision photosynthesis' process, Provectus Algae is able to naturally synthesise molecules, achieving new outcomes that are only possible with algae.

Bio-manufacturing is the next industrial revolution and microalgae will be one of the leading bio production systems for multiple industries: Food and Beverage (natural & sustainable food flavourings, fragrances and colourings); Agriculture (next generation of crop protection and feed supplements); Therapeutics (life saving medicines made possible through the wisdom of biology).

Globally, the biotech industry has seen exponential growth over the last decade as these new technologies reach commercial maturity. This growth is being driven by social and government-led pressure to reduce environmental impact, as well as the commercial need to reduce production costs and secure supply chains.

Provectus Algae's Founder, Nusqe Spanton, has a background in marine biotechnology and spent years in pearl farming facilities developing unique insights into the behaviour of algae. From those insights, the Provectus Algae team has built a closed-loop, end-to-end automated R&D machine for identifying new synthetics. The team now has years of experience growing algae at scale, and has secured the intellectual property underpinning their end-to-end process, as well as a pipeline of customers eager to work with the company to produce more sustainable products.

Provectus Algae was born out of the realisation that current platforms used for synthetic biology applications fall short in their capacity to effectively produce a meaningful proportion of the necessary elements of production. Nusqe's goal is daring yet simple: "... transform the bio-manufacturing landscape & enable an industrial revolution built with biology."

We’re excited to be backing Nusqe Spanton and the entire Provectus Algae team on their mission.

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