Company: Rubi Laboratories, San Leandro, CA
Nomination Submitted by: The Key PR
Company Description: Founded in 2020, Rubi makes carbon-negative textiles for the fashion industry with synthetic biology. Similar to the high-quality natural textiles used in industry, Rubi's fabric is made entirely from carbon emissions, bypassing current agriculture and manufacturing to create a product that is carbon-negative, water and land neutral, and naturally biodegradable.
Nomination Category: Company/Organization Awards Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Most Innovative Company of the Year – 10 or Less Employees
 Nomination Title: Rubi Laboratories: Most Innovative Company of the Year – 10 or Less Employees
- Which will you submit for your nomination in this category, a video of up to five (5) minutes, explaining the achievements since July 1, 2020 of the nominated organization, OR written answers to the questions? (Choose one):
Written answers to the questions
- If you are submitting a video of up to five (5) minutes in length, provide the URL of the video here, OR attach it to your entry via the "Add Attachments, Videos, or Links to This Entry" link above, through which you may also upload a copy of your video. If you are submitting written answers to the questions for this category, provide them in the appropriate spaces below:
- Briefly describe the nominated organization: history and past performance (up to 200 words):
Total 200 words used.
Rubi was founded in 2020 by two twin sisters Neeka Mashouf and Leila Mashouf, who are scientists in materials and biology. At 15 years old, CEO Neeka published an artificial photosynthesis paper at the Lawrence Berkeley National Lab and CTO Leila is a graduate researcher at Stanford University in Neurosurgery and Bioengineering. They teamed up to re-invent fashion supply chains with a proprietary biomanufacturing technology that is inherently planet-positive.
Inspired by how trees grow, Rubi uses biochemical processes powered by enzymes at an industrial scale to “eat” carbon emissions and make carbon-negative, resource-neutral textiles. Rubi’s patent-pending, cell-free biocatalytic process captures and converts CO2 from the waste streams of manufacturing facilities into cellulose. The converted cellulose is then used to create lyocell yarn which can be used for clothing and materials. 100% of CO2 inputted to the end product is done with zero waste.
In February 2022, Rubi raised $4.5m in seed funding to supply major fashion brands with carbon-negative textile. The company is already experiencing high market demand for its product and has agreed test plans with numerous tier-one global retail brands and in discussions with various multinational energy and manufacturing companies to provide CO2 to scale up production.
- Outline the organization's achievements since July 1 2020 that you wish to bring to the judges' attention (up to 250 words):
Total 241 words used.
Since discovering the possibility of making the same textiles fashion brands use through a carbon-negative, zero-water, zero-land process, Rubi has captured the interest of the scientific community, top investors, global fashion brands and have made monumental achievements, including:
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A grant of a quarter million dollars from the National Science Foundation
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Raising $4.5m in seed funding from Talis Capital and Necessary Ventures, with participation from Climactic, Collaborative Fund, Plug and Play, Incite Ventures, Darco Capital, Cayuse Partners, Axial VC, Climate Capital Collective, and CapitalX.
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Nominated as one of five winners of H&M's Global Change Award, which granted funding and a one-year of access to an accelerator program that shares resources for the production of the winning products and most importantly, bringing their carbon-zero textiles to retailers and consumers across the globe
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Selected among the 8 startups joining the Fashion for Good 2022 Global Innovation Programme, a nine-month program that provides a bespoke approach to validate their technologies in preparation for implementation across the fashion value chain
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Securing partnerships with global retail and fashion brands
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Featured in major media outlets such as TechCrunch, Vogue Business, SF Business Times, Fashion United, and more.
The company is just getting started, and there is a lot more in the pipeline for Rubi as they continue to grow. Rubi plans to mitigate 2% of global CO2 emissions every year and provide a carbon-removal service to manufacturing facilities, and continue bringing solutions to aid the climate crisis.
- Reference any attachments of supporting materials throughout this nomination and how they provide evidence of the claims you have made in this nomination (up to 250 words):
Total 97 words used.
I've provided the following supporting materials to provide evidence for Rubi's achievments:
- Links to the TechCrunch, SF Business Times, Vogue Business, and Fashion United articles. The TechCrunch, Vogue Business, and Fashion United articles feature Rubi's $4.5 million in funding. The SFBT article highlights Rubi as the only U.S. company to win H&M's Global Change Award.
- Link to the National Science Foundation funding
- A YouTube video linked of Rubi's Global Change Award
- A link to Rubi's Fashion for Good Global Innovation Program
- Sample pictures of Rubi's texile, the two founders, and Neeka working in the lab
- Explain why the achievements you have highlighted are unique or significant. If possible compare the achievements to the performance of other players in your industry and/or to the organization's past performance (up to 250 words):
Total 249 words used.
To combat climate change, the world needs affordable and scalable solutions rooted in cutting-edge science and technology to reinvent the ways industries operate. The fashion industry, specifically textile production, is currently the third most CO2 polluting supply chain on the planet. The reality is that until there’s a way to produce sustainable clothing while also maintaining profit margins, we won’t improve. That’s where Rubi comes in.
As the pioneer in carbon-negative cellulosic textiles, Rubi stands alone as a definitive solution in achieving key factors across sustainability, quality, price, and scalability. Rubi helps fashion brands achieve their sustainability commitments, increase customer loyalty, and ultimately increase revenue through its patent-pending, cell-free biocatalytic process, starting with lyocell. The first of its kind, Rubi captures CO2 from the waste streams of manufacturing facilities using its proprietary enzyme system which can capture and convert CO2 from a gas input at any concentration. The CO2 is then converted into cellulose, which can then be used to create viscose-based yarn. By utilizing enzymes as the catalyst, Rubi is able to turn 100% of CO2 inputted to the end product with zero waste. Rubi is uniquely carbon-negative, high-quality, affordable, and scalable. On top of this, brands get loyal customers, increased revenue, and a safer planet for all. It’s a win-win solution for everyone.
Ultimately, a pair of jeans made with Rubi fabric consumes no water or land, actively removes CO2 from the atmosphere, and is naturally biodegradable. Rubi is not only combating climate change, but reversing it.
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