Founder in Residence, Next-Gen Biorefineries
Marble
About Marble
Marble is a climate tech venture studio. Our north star is to erase billions of tons from annual greenhouse gas emissions and create a thriving future.
We partner with scientists, engineers and operators to create new deep tech companies that solve hard climate problems — slash emissions, remove carbon from the atmosphere, and cool the planet — while reshaping multi-billion $ industries.
We're proud to be backed by leading climate investors across Europe and the US.
Unlocking Lignocellulosic Biomass
Plant dry matter, or lignocellulose, is the most abundant biomass on Earth, with 181 billion tons produced each year. While natural ecosystems make up the bulk of this volume, waste biomass represents a vast feedstock potential. As an example, just 25% of global agriculture and forestry residues could yield over 20 EJ worth of biofuels.
However, the processing of lignocellulosic biomass (LCB) remains challenging at scale. One key bottleneck is high-yield fractionation to separate the cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin, due to the complex nature of the lignin polymeric matrix.
Biorefineries, which integrate multiple product streams, have yet to demonstrate profitability. This is due to the heterogeneity of biomass and its chemical structures, which requires customised processing methods, tough economics for commodity products, as well as underdeveloped markets for specialty chemicals.
Efficient LCB processing requires a balanced approach which integrates scalable technologies with local biomass value chains. For instance, two-thirds of the supply is located in developing countries, which often lack the infrastructure to aggregate biomass.
We are exploring novel approaches to valorize LCB for the next gen biorefinery, with a particular focus on bio-energy and bio-based materials.
The Opportunity
We aim to create a company to efficiently produce 2nd generation biofuels and other products from abundant waste biomass (e.g. agriculture and forestry residues). Desirable outputs could include bio-ethanol, bio-diesel, aromatics, other chemicals, etc.
We are particularly interested in new approaches to lignocellulose fractionation and other process engineering innovations.
Examples of opportunities we are considering:
- Lignin-first fractionation: methods which preserve lignin to maximise its valorisation. Examples include reductive-catalytic fractionation, diol-assisted fractionation, in-situ amination of lignin, or supercritical fractionation.
- Integration of fractionation and utilisation: using a single reactor to process LCB into useful products. Methods like simultaneous saccharification and fermentation could directly produce ethanol directly from various LCB inputs.
- Novel conversion pathways: emerging technologies to efficiently convert fractionation outputs into useful products. Examples include the synthesis of aromatic molecules from lignin, or nano-cellulose from cellulose.
- Feedstock analysis: using analytical chemistry to model carbohydrate and sugar content in feedstocks and retrofit results with the right fractionation process.
- Industrial integration: optimising bio-refineries to plug into existing industrial assets and established processes, such as pulp & paper.
We are looking for a Founder in Residence to join our next cohort to explore these approaches further and create the most scaleable LCB processing company.
➡️ Apply Here or see the Programme Structure
Skills & Profile
We are seeking an entrepreneurial engineer with deep technical expertise (e.g. PhD level or equivalent work experience) to create a high-impact company in lignocellulosic biomass processing with Marble. Direct industry exposure is a plus.
Examples of relevant backgrounds:
- Chemical engineer with applied experience in using pre-treatments to fractionate biomass (e.g., dilute-acid, alkaline, supercritical fluids, etc.)
- OR Bioprocess / biochemical engineer with experience in fermentation analysis, downstream processing methods, process optimisation and scale-up.
- OR Industry experience in lignocellulosic biomass processing: bio-refineries, pulp & paper, forestry, agriculture, fuels and chemicals. A very granular understanding of the bio-refinery and bio-manufacturing model (challenges, landscape, etc) is ideal.
We encourage you to apply even if you don’t feel you meet all requirements. Above all, we value intelligence, creativity and Founder Potential.
Especially if you recognise yourself below:
- You can’t wait to start your own company (or your next one)
- You are a pragmatic optimist on a mission to tackle climate change
- You are outcome focused and action oriented - you make things happen
- You are a great communicator - you can convince others to follow you
- You love to break down ambitious goals into actionable milestones
- You understand that innovation starts with people - not ideas
What We Offer
As a Founder-in-Residence, you will join stellar individuals who also believe in deep tech solutions to solve hard climate problems.
Together, we would be scoping high potential approaches before converging on the most promising one and finding your future co-founders.
We offer (among other things)
- A €2,500 to €3,000 monthly allowance during the programme
- A €250,000 pre-seed investment on startup creation if you’re successful. You and your team will own 80% of the company at pre-seed.
- Full-stack support in our venture creation programme
- Mentorship and guidance at every step of the way Hands on support across technology and market research, landing interviews with experts and customers, techno economics, roadmap and scale up strategy, IP strategy, team building, advisor sourcing, and more
- Access to an unparalleled network across science, industry, talent, investors, mentors, climate tech founders, curated vendors and suppliers
- Access to our research insights, knowledge base and resources Weekly check-ins, work sessions in our Paris HQ (or remote) and continuous peer learning with other programme participants
- Seed Fundraising support after the programme. Introductions to the best seed investors from our network and help with term sheet negotiation.
- Founder Visa sponsorship if you wish to relocate to France. Remote participation is possible, preferably from Europe and with regular in-person meetings.
How to Apply
We are currently taking applications for the October 2024 cohort and we are interviewing on a rolling basis so we encourage you to apply as soon as possible!
➡️ Apply Here or see the Programme Structure
We believe that a diverse group of minds is key to solving the climate crisis. We encourage women and people of colour to apply.
Studies have shown that under-represented candidates are less likely to apply unless they feel they meet every single qualification. If you are excited about the opportunity but your experience does not align perfectly - we encourage you to apply anyways.
We are committed to a diverse, inclusive and mission-driven Founder community.
FAQs
For a full list of FAQs, please visit our website.