A University of Waterloo affiliate is looking to scale up technology that extends the shelf life of paper packaging.
In layman's terms, Advanced materials startup in Kitchener-Waterloo Endless wants to make “a paper that does like plastic” From a technical perspective, it is a pioneering technology that seals flexible paper packaging using nanotechnology to extend its lifespan.
The University of Waterloo department is poised to demonstrate that it can do this at scale and in a cost-effective manner with the help of a new C$4.6 million grant from the federally funded National Research Council of Canada (NRC) under its Industrial Research Assistance Program, Nfinite CEO Miguel Galvez told BetaKit in an exclusive interview ahead of today's funding announcement.
“This is a very significant amount of money, and it comes at a time that is a valley of death for deep tech startups.”
Nfinite has spent years developing technology that can coat paper with a thin film that keeps water and oxygen molecules out, meaning it won't be easily damaged. Using a proprietary process reminiscent of semiconductor coating, the startup hopes to extend the shelf life of paper packaging used to store consumer products such as protein bars or coffee capsules, while also keeping it compostable and recyclable at the same cost as plastic alternatives.
The funding will allow Nfinite to begin commercializing its platform, which applies thin film to paper rolls, in a pilot manufacturing facility that it hopes to begin construction by early 2027. It will also allow the company to collaborate with partners Amcor (which is also an investor), PepsiCo and Unilever.
“This is a very significant amount of money, and it comes at a time that is a valley of death for deep tech manufacturing startups,” Nfinite CEO Miguel Galvez told BetaKit in an exclusive interview with BetaKit. Galvez said the transition from pilot to production is the hardest part of any deep tech manufacturing company's journey and said there are few funders to fund the leap.
“The NRC coming in is a huge, huge win for us because as a result of this grant money, we will validate our pilot production and be ready to build the plant,” he added. To this end, Nfinite has commissioned a pilot plant in Waterloo with a capacity to produce 200,000 square meters of this paper per year.
Since closing $8.9 million In its 2024 seed round, Nfinite honed its business model. The company intends to sell rolls of thin-film-coated paper to consumer products brands, “almost like a paper mill,” Galvez said.
Galvez, who was involved with the startup through his role as a venture partner at seed investor Nfinite Republic Capital, took over as Nfinite's CEO in February, replacing co-founder Chee Hau Teo. He said the Nfinite team hired him for his experience building and selling Massachusetts-based NBD Nano.
CONNECTED: Nfinite Nanotech enters C$8.9 million deal for eco-friendly nano-coated packaging
NBD Nano, which developed thin-film coatings that the electronics industry uses to protect products from dirt and stains, was acquired by German manufacturing giant Henkel in 2022. Galvez said the company's technology and path to commercialization have many similarities with Nfinite. “I really felt like I had been doing the same thing for the last 15 years,” he added.
The CEO said flexible paper packaging already exists that can preserve faster-turnover food products, such as candy bars. But when it comes to protecting products that are stored longer before consumption, such as protein bars, soup packets or coffee capsules, the shelf life of existing options becomes an issue. Nfinite aims to change this by coating flexible paper packaging with thin film using a technology and technique called deposition of spatial atomic layers at atmospheric pressure.
The startup was founded in 2021 by University of Waterloo associate professor Kevin Musselman, an expert in the field, and two of his graduate students, Teo and CTO Ji Yeon Loke.
Combined with Nfinite's existing projects, Galvez says the grant gives Nfinite and its 18-person team three to four years of success. Once Nfinite de-risks its pilot and solves the problem of continuous thin film deposition at scale, the startup plans to launch a Series A round.
“I think a lot of deep tech companies have raised large amounts of money on false promises and then ultimately nothing has worked out,” Galvez said. “We don't want to be that way. We want to make sure that we've proven everything and are completely confident that this is a scalable and profitable factory.”
Image courtesy of Nfinite Nanotech.
