The Top 10 Best Biomimicry Examples of 2022 (so far) 🏆
Hello bio-designers
Every year, the Biomimicry Institute assembles the top nature-inspired startups in the world to accelerate their growth. From facilitating events to disconnect from the internet and reconnect with the wild world (we all need a bit more of that), to providing sustainable and biomimicry business training, communications support, and funding opportunities - and hows this - the winner receives $100,000 equity-free prize 🤯
Without further ado, let's see who's in the Top 10!
1. Plant-Based Volatiles inspired Packaging Sachets - GreenPod Labs
Meet the Biomimicry Institutes Ray of Hope Prize Winner - Greenpod Labs. With ~40% of fresh produce lost before it reaches consumers, Greenpod Labs have created bio-inspired packaging sachets that mimic the built-in defense mechanisms within specific fruits or vegetables, in order to slow down the ripening rate and minimize microbial growth. These are called plant-based volatiles, and the right formulation reduces the need for cold storage and cold supply chains. The only flaw is that they didn’t call it Berry Cool.
🪲 Inspired by: Fruit and vegetables' built-in defence mechanisms
📍 Where: India
🎯 Innovation / Function: bio-inspired packaging sachets
✏️ Website: https://greenpodlabs.com
2. Bio-inspired Nano-scale Surface Texture - Fusion Bionic
Straight out of a science function, Fusion Bionic is opening a new door to new nano-scale surface textures. The right surface textures hold endless possibilities, from anti-icing textures for aviation, to medical products which are antibacterial (akin to the denticles of shark skin). Fusion Bionic creates laser-generated surface texture using their Direct Laser Interference Patterning (DLIP) machines.
🪲 Inspired by: Textures found in nature
📍 Where: Germany
🎯 Innovation / Function: bio-inspired laser textures (micro and nanoscale)
✏️ Website: https://fusionbionic.com/en/
3. Nano structured inspired Waterproof and Breathable Textiles - Amphibio
Amphibio has had a rain-wave… rethinking the way traditional waterproof breathable textiles are made. Using textiles made from one source material, they’ve accomplished creating a new recyclable and PFC-free alternative for the outdoor and sportswear industry (think the future Coretex 2.0). Removing the need for any chemical treatments, Amphibio has mitigated two of the biggest barriers to sustainable textile production today - one material and no need for any chemical treatments.
🪲 Inspired by: liquid repellent nano-structures found in nature
📍 Where: United Kingdom
🎯 Innovation / Function: waterproof and breathable textiles
✏️ Website: https://www.amphibio.co/
4. The Maple Seed inspired PowerCone® - Biome Renewables
Biome Renewables has focused on sustainable renewable energy, specifically wind turbines. Their innovation is the PowerCone® - a wind turbine retrofit inspired by the aerodynamics of a falling maple seed, moving through the air with a pattern of least resistance. The PowerCone, which is a second smaller rotor bolted to the hub of existing wind turbines, can increase the annual energy production of a wind turbine while minimizing the number of loads and vibrations experienced by the turbine. I had a pun about wind to include here, but it blows
🪲 Inspired by: Maple seed in motion
📍 Where: Canada
🎯 Innovation / Function: the PowerCone®
✏️ Website: https://www.biome-renewables.com
5. Embedding Enzymes for better Plastic Degradation - Intropic Materials
I think we are all in agreement, none of us want plastic waste in our landfills and even worse; our oceans. Solving it at the source is first prize to our plastic crisis, though some plastics are incredibly useful. Intropic Materials is solving plastic waste from the inside out by embedding enzymes directly inside specific plastics to speed up natural degradation. These plastics break down at the end of use into biodegradable or chemically recyclable small molecules without producing microplastics, in accessible life-friendly conditions like warm water baths or compost.
🪲 Inspired by: Chaperone proteins
📍 Where: United States
🎯 Innovation / Function: Embedding enzymes to speed by plastic degradation
✏️ Website: https://intropicmaterials.com/
6. Cellular Geometries inspired Metamaterials - Metavoxel
When we look at cell structures, it’s easy to understand why small is beautiful. Metavoxel recreates lightweight and strong cellular geometries to produce metamaterials which can improve structural efficiency and reduce the cost and environmental footprint of the built environment. Low-density, high-performance cellular materials like bone, bamboo, and marine sponges are nature’s way of doing more with less, providing structural efficiency and multifunctionality across scales.
🪲 Inspired by: Cellular geometries
📍 Where: United States
🎯 Innovation / Function:
✏️ Website: https://www.metavoxel.tech
7. Fungi Inspired On-site Waste Remediation - Mycocycle
Mycocycle works with nature’s master decomposers, fungi, to break down complex waste streams such as construction materials and asphalt. Using a systems-level biomimicry approach, Mycocycle’s process enables a circular industrial supply chain, becoming ever more important as landfills reach capacity. To accomplish this, Mycocycle first optimizes fungi in a lab to decompose specific waste streams. Then, they remediate the waste on-site in collaboration with manufacturers, recyclers, and waste management companies. The resulting by-product can then be used to create new products. Learn more here.
🪲 Inspired by: Fungi
📍 Where: United States
🎯 Innovation / Function:
✏️ Website: https://mycocycle.com/
8. Human Eye Inspired Environmentally Friendly Sunscreen - Soliome
Sunscreen is often thought of as our sun savior, but the use of toxic chemicals has many unintended consequences to our oceans sensitive organisms like coral. Sóliome has created a novel sunscreen inspired by compounds that naturally concentrate in the lens of the human eye to absorb UVA and UVB radiation. By isolating and stabilizing this molecule, Sóliome is able to create a safe, affordable, and environmentally friendly sunscreen. If you don’t get a job at Sóliome, you can always reapply 😆
🪲 Inspired by: Compounds that naturally concentrate in the lens of the human eye
📍 Where: United States
🎯 Innovation / Function: environmentally friendly sunscreen
✏️ Website: https://soliome.com
9. Tree inspired Woodflow - Strong by Form
By combining material science with the latest digital optimization tools, Strong by Form has developed Woodflow, a fabrication technology that follows natural form functions found in trees. Their proprietary additive manufacturing process can create high-performance, ultralight, timber-based structural composites for the construction and mobility industries at a fraction of their environmental impact. You cannot see the forest from the trees, but Strong by Form seems to.
🪲 Inspired by: Trees
📍 Where: Chile
🎯 Innovation / Function: Woodflow - a fabrication technology for construction industries
✏️ Website: https://strongbyform.com
10. Liver Inspired Toxic Free Cleaning Materials - Sudoc
One of your body's most amazing organs, The human liver is just incredible - from filtering harmful things from your blood, storing fuel, and even helps you digest food.. Sudoc creates chemical cleaning products that emulate how enzymes work in the human liver to efficiently oxidize harmful and toxic micropollutants. Sudoc’s innovative chemistry platform can outperform traditional mold stain removal products with 1/30th the chemical content. This directly reduces, replaces, and eliminates toxic chemicals in a wide range of applications. Liver da liva loca!
🪲 Inspired by: The human liver
📍 Where: United States
🎯 Innovation / Function: Toxic-free cleaning products
✏️ Website: https://www.sudoc.com
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The Learn Biomimicry Team
