Our Current Sparkfund-Cohort

LipiTune

Felicia Zlati

LipiTune is developing a biotechnological platform for the production of tailor-made microbial oils as a cost-effective and high-performance alternative to conventional vegetable oils. At the heart of this innovation is an adjustable fatty acid profile with very low batch variability. This enables us to supply stable, regionally producible and sustainable raw materials, initially for the cosmetics industry and, in the future, for other markets as well.

ScapX

Kartikeya Marepalli

ScapX develops a protein-based technologies to recover critical metals from industrial waste streams. By harnessing the precise binding capabilities of engineered biomolecules, we enable efficient, selective, and sustainable metal extraction. Our approach bridges biotechnology and materials science, turning waste into valuable resources and advancing a circular, resilient supply chain for the industries of tomorrow.

Power2Polymers

Marek Balschun

Power2Polymers has developed a patented synthesis technique for creating novel, more sustainable polymers that provide performance benefits for specialty applications. Within the Spark Fund, our main focus is currently on coating materials—a promising new application area. We’re evaluating whether coatings could become an additional field of use. Beyond coatings, our core work is in adhesives and lubricants.

Verdancy

Susanne Braun

Verdancy is a spin-off in the making from RWTH Aachen Institute for Biotechnology and DWI Leibniz Institute for interactive Materials, that focuses on developing fully biodegradable & microplatic free adjuvants for crop protection and nutrition active substances that enable their rainfast and precise delivery to plants.

MAGnexa

Dr. Maochao Mao

MAGnexa leverages advanced SPION-peptide fusion technology to enable active magnetic capture and monitoring of micro- and nano-plastics in flowing systems. Its modular platform integrates filtration units containing bifunctional magnetic constructs, standalone peptide solutions for system recharging, and dedicated plastic polymer detection and quantification services. Unlike static adsorption-based filtration, our bioengineered magnetic particles are programmable via peptide design, allowing precise targeting of specific contaminants and rapid adaptation to emerging threats. By combining magnetic actuation with customizable bio-recognition, our technology establishes a new class of adaptive, data-enabled, and sustainable flowing systems treatment and monitoring solutions.

Nano Alpha

Ankit Saini, Dr. Shwetambara Jha, Miroslav Malicevic

Nano Alpha is a deep-tech startup pioneering sustainable metal recovery through its proprietary PROSOLVEX technology, combining electrochemical metal extraction with plastic-to-gas conversion to recover high-purity critical metals like copper, gold, rare earths, and battery metals from electronic waste — with near-zero waste, lower energy and chemical use than conventional recycling. This strengthens Europe's supply chain resilience and raw material independence, supporting key industries like electric vehicles, renewable energy, semiconductors, and advanced manufacturing.

EvoEne

Niklas Rimkus, Philipp Bechtold

EvoEne develops targeted binding technologies engineered for the selective capture of microplastics. As a first-in-class application, our lead solution targets the human intestinal tract, where it entraps ingested particles to facilitate their natural excretion.

cyflux

Shijia Pei, Moritz Uttendorfer, Paul Hilgers, Matthis Büter, Malte Ernst

cyflux develops machines and additive manufacturing technology for a new generation of sustainable biomaterials. Our large scale robotic fabrication systems enable biogenic materials such as wood based composites to be turned into functional, circular products.

PalmPro Enzymes

Ruth Ogbevire, Natalie Mbonjani, Michael Umeokoli

PalmPro is engineering enzymes for vegetable oil mills, enabling them to recover more oil from their existing resources.

Carboslag