Published: March 28, 2019 By

mallinda

CU Boulder spinoff Mallinda recently announced in a press release that the company closed a $2 million strategic investment by SABIC, a global leader in diversified chemicals. This round of financing will enable Mallinda to scale up and to deliver its first commercial product of its high-performance materials for the transportation segment.

Born from a chemistry lab on campus, Mallinda’s patented resin system enables composite molding in mere seconds. This fully recyclable, carbon-fiber composite material is environmentally friendly and useful in applications from automobiles to sports equipment, and medical devices. 

The company was co-founded by CU Boulder alumni Chris Kaffer (PhD, molecular biology/immunology) and Philip Taynton (PhD, chemistry) and Associate Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Wei Zhang.

Mallinda took full advantage of CU Boulder's innovation ecosystem by:

  • working with Venture Partners at CU Boulder (formerly the Technology Transfer Office) to patent its carbon-fiber composite technology;
  • signing an exclusive licensing agreement with the university through Venture Partners at CU Boulder;
  • competing and tying for first-place in CU Boulder's premier, cross-campus entrepreneurial competition, the New Venture Challenge, in 2014;
  • participating in Catalyze CU, an on-campus startup accelerator for the university's most promising ideas and technologies;
  • receiving funding and grant support from the National Science Foundation's Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program and the Office of Economic Development and International Trade's Advanced Industries Accelerator (AIA).

To learn more about how the university helps foster innovative startups like Mallinda, visit Venture Partners at CU Boulder.