Shiru – a pioneer in AI-based ingredient discovery – announced it has secured a $16 million investment round as it leads a revolution in how ingredients are discovered and developed across multiple industries.
Shiru’s flagship platform ProteinDiscovery.ai has the world’s largest database of natural proteins from plants and microbes. And the AI-driven platform enables corporate partners in food, personal care, agriculture and advanced materials to swiftly identify and test highly functional, natural ingredients. The results include dramatically reduced R&D and product development costs, accelerated time to market and high functional capabilities from nature-identical products.
The funding round – bringing Shiru’s total funding to $36 million – was led by longtime investor S2G Ventures, with participation from CPT Capital, Lux Capital, Nourish Ventures, and Meach Cove Capital. And this investment will drive Shiru’s ambitious growth plans, expanding its ingredient portfolio and enhancing ProteinDiscovery.ai through new commercial partnerships and expanded offerings. Shiru’s recent advancements highlights its leadership position in ingredient innovation:
1.) A joint partnership with Ajinomoto Health & Nutrition for developing and scaling sweet proteins, a long-sought goal in the food industry.
2.) The introduction of OleoPro, a high-performance, structured fat alternative that recently received a USPTO patent; and uPro™, the active protein ingredient in OleoPro.
3.) Confirmed partnerships with global leaders including Griffith Foods to discover, pilot and scale sustainable food ingredients.
KEY QUOTES:
“AI-powered discovery isn’t only the future of ingredient innovation – it’s here today, and we’re eager to expand our capabilities across flavor, skincare and agriculture. Our technology dramatically reduces development timelines and costs, empowering R&D teams to revolutionize products, categories and industries through our platform, enabling valuable innovation and competitive advantage.”
“While we’re starting with proteins, our vision extends far beyond. ProteinDiscovery.ai is just the beginning. We’re building a comprehensive platform that will revolutionize ingredient discovery across multiple molecular classes, driving innovation that benefits both industry and consumers.”
– Dr. Jasmin Hume, Founder and CEO of Shiru
