Why we invested in Cocoon Carbon

Concrete is the most used substance in the world after water, and together with steel, accounts for a staggering 14% of global GHG emissions. As we continue to industrialize, the scale of this decarbonization opportunity only grows, with these sectors producing the building blocks for our modern cities and infrastructure.

Over time, steel and concrete supply chains have evolved in parallel, leveraging many of the same transit networks to serve their customers. Waste from steel-making has even become a critical input to the concrete industry, as one of the leading sources of supplementary cementitious material (SCM). SCM made from steel slag is used to improve the durability and performance of concrete, while replacing ordinary portland cement – the ingredient responsible for 80-95% of concrete’s carbon emissions.

In recent years, we’ve seen amazing progress on technology with the potential to bring down steel and concrete emissions. One readily deployable solution for the steel industry is the electric arc furnace – which is fast replacing traditional coal-powered blast furnaces. However, with the turnover of blast furnaces, the concrete industry has lost a crucial resource, and one of the most immediately scalable ways to reduce the carbon intensity of cement. 

Fully decarbonizing industries operating at this scale will require a massive mobilization of resources – a traditional cement plant built from proven technologies can already cost billions of dollars and years of construction. With growing demand for building materials, declining supply of SCM, and accelerating decarbonization commitments, we see urgent demand for solutions that can deliver cost-effective carbon impacts in the short-term. 

Cocoon is repairing a disruption in these long-established supply chains by reconnecting the steel and concrete industries through a modular system that allows both to better address the rapidly growing demand for sustainable construction worldwide. We were drawn to the company’s novel approach, which leverages existing feedstocks, flow sheets, and supply chains to produce low-carbon cement from EAF slag, all while increasing the profitability of sustainable steel operations. Cocoon’s extraordinary founding team convinced us that their scalable, shipping container sized system can be the winning solution in these markets.

The team brings deep domain experience in industrial decarbonization, geology, and materials science, combined with operational leadership from high-growth tech startups. CEO Eliot Brooks previously started a venture-backed healthcare company and has nearly a decade of experience launching and growing early-stage companies. CTO Freddie Scott trained as a mechanical engineer at Cambridge, and has led the development and scale up of commercial-scale renewable energy projects, and CSO Will Knapp completed his PhD in carbon mineralization at Cambridge. It’s been amazing to witness their pace of learning and execution. In a relatively short period of time, they’ve already delivered an MVP, initiated collaborations with a number of cement manufacturers to validate their SCM, and will complete construction of a demo site with a UK steel plant by the end of 2024. 

Wireframe is thrilled to lead Cocoon’s $5.4 million pre-seed round alongside a terrific group of co-investors. The company has recruited a tremendous early team and is actively hiring for their mission to enable dual decarbonization of steel and concrete industries.