Biotechnology company MycoWorks, based in California, signed a long-term agreement with General Motors Co. investor, GM Ventures to co-develop Fine Mycelium materials for automotive design use, according to a press release.
"Working with General Motors to introduce Fine Mycelium to the automotive industry is an enormous step forward in the global new materials revolution," CEO of MycoWorks, Matt Scullin, said. "MycoWorks's collaboration with GM is a first for us outside of the fashion industry, demonstrating the enormous potential and applications for Fine Mycelium."
The collaboration reflects MycoWorks and GM’s pursuit of end-use leather markets, and efforts to create sustainable materials for the automotive industry and reduce emissions and congestions.
The companies will work to produce mycelium, the renewable root structure of mushrooms used to make leather alternatives, which are credited with limiting impacts on the environment.
“Animal-free and chrome-free, Fine Mycelium also has superior strength at low thicknesses, offering a compelling pathway to efficiency and weight reduction in car interiors while still meeting the most stringent performance, aesthetic and environmental requirements of the automotive space,” a recent press release states.
"Our strategic investment in MycoWorks aims to advance the development of sustainable automotive materials," said Wade Sheffer, managing director of GM Ventures. "This collaboration will help facilitate R&D efforts and build more sustainable alternatives for our designers."
The collaboration is confirmed just a few months after MycoWorks's $125 million Series C funding round agreement, which funded the company’s full-scale production facility capable of producing several million square feet of Fine Mycelium materials per year.