Uluu, an Australian startup developing sustainable materials from seaweed, has raised A$16 million in Series A funding to build a demonstration plant and advance its mission to replace fossil fuel-based plastics with natural biodegradable alternatives. The round was led by German growth investor Burda Principal Investments, with participation from Main Sequence, Novel Investments (the family office of one of the world’s largest textile groups), Startmate, and a consortium of impact and family investors including Fairground and Trinity Ventures.
The new capital will fund the construction of a 10-tonne-per-year demonstration plant in Western Australia, scaling production from its current 100kg pilot facility. The expanded capacity will allow Uluu to deliver commercial volumes to its growing customer base across cosmetics, fashion, and automotive industries, which already includes partnerships with Quiksilver, Papinelle, and Audi.
Founded in 2021, Uluu utilizes a fermentation process that combines seaweed and natural microbes to create PHAs—biopolymers that mimic the properties of conventional plastics but are reusable, recyclable, home compostable, and marine biodegradable. Unlike fossil-based plastics that emit approximately 3kg of CO₂ per kilogram produced, Uluu’s materials have the potential to sequester and avoid around 5kg of CO₂ equivalent per kilogram, offering a climate-positive solution at scale.
The company’s next-generation materials are strong, lightweight, and waterproof while being non-toxic and capable of integrating seamlessly with existing plastic manufacturing equipment. At a global commercial scale, the technology could reduce CO₂ emissions by over two gigatonnes annually.
This funding positions Uluu to transition from pilot to pre-commercial operations while preparing for a larger commercial facility capable of producing thousands of tonnes of material each year.
The company’s investor base also includes prominent U.S. backers such as model and entrepreneur Karlie Kloss, who has been a vocal supporter of sustainability and STEM initiatives.
KEY QUOTES:
“After four years’ work developing this technology, including two years’ running our pilot plant, we’re excited to take this next step and start delivering meaningful volumes of our materials to customers. The demonstration plant is a critical step in showing Uluu can scale to truly compete with and replace fossil plastics.”
Michael Kingsbury, Co-Founder and Co-CEO, Uluu
“Seaweed grows quickly and gets everything it need from the sun and the sea. It locks away CO2 and helps clean up pollutants from the ocean. By harnessing seaweed, Uluu is producing materials that have a positive, rather than negative, impact on the environment, while ending plastic pollution.”
Dr. Julia Reisser, Co-Founder and Co-CEO, Uluu
“Uluu is tackling one of the biggest challenges of our time—plastic pollution—with a natural, scalable solution. Their mission resonates deeply with me, and I wanted to be part of a positive change showing sustainability can be beautiful.”
Karlie Kloss, Investor, Entrepreneur, and STEM Advocate
“At BPI, we invest in companies driving transformative innovation with the potential to become a global category leader. Having first invested in Uluu in 2023, we’re excited to further deepen our partnership as the company scales its pioneering technology. Uluu is redefining how materials can be produced more sustainably at industrial scale, and we look forward to supporting Julia, Michael, and their team on this next stage of their journey.”
Christian Teichmann, CEO, Burda Principal Investments
