In the UK, Solena Materials has raised $6.7 million (£5.1 million) in seed funding, following a $4.1 million (£3.1 million) pre-seed funding round in 2022, that it will use to produce protein fibers at scale. The company uses AI techniques to custom-design fibers at the molecular level which are then produced using engineered microbes. Its AI techniques allow it to optimize performance characteristics of the fibers such as appearance, hand-feel and tensile strength, and could result in new and higher performing fashion, sports apparel, and technical textiles. Source: Biofuels Digest 13/5/2025