Immaterial

Immaterial is unlocking the potential of metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), a breakthrough class of materials, to decarbonise industry, capture carbon and accelerate the global energy transition.

Spun out of the University of Cambridge’s Department of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology in 2015, Immaterial was founded by Professor David Fairen-Jimenez. The company’s mission is rooted in a fundamental challenge of the net-zero transition: making it cheaper, more efficient and more scalable to capture the hardest-to-abate industrial carbon emissions among other required energy transition technologies.

At the heart of Immaterial technology are it’s proprietary dense monolithic metal-organic frameworks (m-MOFs), an advanced class of porous materials that can separate store and purify gases with exceptional precision. Conventional gas separation technologies typically rely on energy-intensive processes such as high pressures, cryogenic cooling, or chemical distillation, driving up both costs and emission. Immaterial has developed a revolutionary method that synthesises MOFs from fragile powders into dense monoliths, dramatically improving their performance, durability and commercial viability. Using AI and multi-scale simulation, Immaterial identifies and optimises the most effective materials and designs bespoke systems tailored to each customer’s needs.

This breakthrough has unlocked applications across some of the most challenging sectors to decarbonise. Immaterial’s technology enables highly selective carbon capture from industrial emissions, more efficient hydrogen storage and purification, water harvesting for more energy-efficient HVAC systems, and advanced clean air systems capable of removing harmful pollutants that conventional filters fail to capture. All of which have the potential to reshape how industries manage carbon, energy and resources in the drive to a net zero economy.

Immaterial has raised a total of $39.2 million to date, including an $18.2 million Series A2 round in 2025. Immaterial reached a major milestone in 2026 with the opening of its first-of-its-kind manufacturing facility at Accelerator Park in Sawston, Cambridgeshire. The facility enables production of its proprietary m-MOFs at multi-tonne scale, positioning the company to serve industrial customers worldwide.

With its manufacturing capability now established, Immaterial is focused on scaling production to bring affordable, low-CAPEX carbon capture and hydrogen storage solutions to hard-to-abate industrial sectors, laying the material foundations for a more sustainable industrial future.