Why We Invested in Dunia
Dunia Innovations is pioneering AI-driven material discovery for sustainable energy transition.
Nov 25, 2024
At Pace, we back founders who make history. That’s why we’re thrilled to announce our investment in Dunia Innovations, a company using AI and chemical robotics to revolutionize material discovery to solve the critical bottleneck in the global energy transition.
The Opportunity
The electrification of heavy-emitting industrial processes presents a significant opportunity. As renewable energy becomes more accessible, electrification offers a cleaner and more flexible approach to running these processes. In green hydrogen production, where electricity accounts for 50–70% of costs, catalysts made from expensive materials like platinum and iridium are a major expense. Additionally, electrolyzer durability issues increase maintenance costs, making catalyst innovation crucial for reducing both CAPEX and OPEX.
Current catalyst development methods are slow and inefficient, relying on manual experiments and trial-and-error approaches. While AI has made some progress, existing physical simulations and in silico approaches have limitations, and available experimental datasets are insufficient to fully explore the possibilities.
Dunia Innovations addresses this bottleneck by integrating AI and chemical robotics to accelerate the discovery and testing of new materials, particularly catalysts. Their platform combines machine learning with high-throughput experimentation, creating a rapid feedback loop for iteration and data generation. This approach significantly reduces the time needed to discover new materials, from decades to just a few years.
Key Platform Features
The Dunia platform seamlessly integrates Machine Learning with robotics to unlock the power of AI to drive material discovery.
AI-driven material discovery: Dunia’s physics-informed AI accelerates the ideation process, enabling innovative, unbiased material design optimized for desired characteristics.
Chemical Robotics: Dunia’s cutting-edge robotic platform rapidly executes electrochemical experiments, meticulously capturing data to ensure traceable, reproducible results.
Self-driving labs: These labs automate the synthesis and testing process, allowing them to discover and validate new materials at an unprecedented pace. (That is why Pace loves this deal so much!)
They are not just improving the discovery process; they’re building a valuable, standardized dataset that gives them a significant advantage. This strong foundation allows their models to become more accurate and efficient in discovering materials that are not only breakthroughs but actually usable for customers. This is what makes Dunia a true category leader in materials discovery.
The Team
Dunia’s founding team brings together deep expertise in AI, computational science, and chemistry automation
Alexander Hammer (CEO): Strong AI and computational background
Marcus Tze-Kiat Ng (CTO): Pioneer in automating chemistry experiments
Ahmed Ismail (COO): Industry experience as a catalyst researcher in oil and gas
When we spent time with the team, we were struck by their deep respect for one another and their shared vision. You can quickly see their commitment and teamwork. One memorable detail that stood out to us was the well-used office couch, that Ahmed uses as a guest bedroom (ala Elon Musk). It’s these small things that reflect their dedication to the mission.
Dunia’s Impact
Dunia’s platform is already making waves in catalyst development, with their technology validated through a proof-of-concept in electrocatalyst ink formulation that outperformed human researchers in both speed and performance. They are initially targeting Power-to-X electrocatalysts for applications like green hydrogen and ammonia production, as well as CO₂ conversion into higher-value chemicals. Given that 90% of chemical processes rely on catalysts, Dunia’s platform has massive potential to disrupt this market.
The global market for electrochemical technologies is projected to reach $1.5 trillion by 2050. Dunia’s ability to reduce the time needed for catalyst discovery — from decades to just a few years — positions them to play a crucial role in decarbonizing key industrial processes.
Our Co-Investors
We’re proud to be joined in this investment by other mission-aligned partners, including Elaia, Redalpine, Kindred Capital, Deep Science Ventures, and Sequoia Capital’s Scout Fund as we support Dunia in revolutionizing material discovery towards sustainable global energy transition.
At Pace, we back founders who make history. That’s why we’re thrilled to announce our investment in Dunia Innovations, a company using AI and chemical robotics to revolutionize material discovery to solve the critical bottleneck in the global energy transition.
The Opportunity
The electrification of heavy-emitting industrial processes presents a significant opportunity. As renewable energy becomes more accessible, electrification offers a cleaner and more flexible approach to running these processes. In green hydrogen production, where electricity accounts for 50–70% of costs, catalysts made from expensive materials like platinum and iridium are a major expense. Additionally, electrolyzer durability issues increase maintenance costs, making catalyst innovation crucial for reducing both CAPEX and OPEX.
Current catalyst development methods are slow and inefficient, relying on manual experiments and trial-and-error approaches. While AI has made some progress, existing physical simulations and in silico approaches have limitations, and available experimental datasets are insufficient to fully explore the possibilities.
Dunia Innovations addresses this bottleneck by integrating AI and chemical robotics to accelerate the discovery and testing of new materials, particularly catalysts. Their platform combines machine learning with high-throughput experimentation, creating a rapid feedback loop for iteration and data generation. This approach significantly reduces the time needed to discover new materials, from decades to just a few years.
Key Platform Features
The Dunia platform seamlessly integrates Machine Learning with robotics to unlock the power of AI to drive material discovery.
AI-driven material discovery: Dunia’s physics-informed AI accelerates the ideation process, enabling innovative, unbiased material design optimized for desired characteristics.
Chemical Robotics: Dunia’s cutting-edge robotic platform rapidly executes electrochemical experiments, meticulously capturing data to ensure traceable, reproducible results.
Self-driving labs: These labs automate the synthesis and testing process, allowing them to discover and validate new materials at an unprecedented pace. (That is why Pace loves this deal so much!)
They are not just improving the discovery process; they’re building a valuable, standardized dataset that gives them a significant advantage. This strong foundation allows their models to become more accurate and efficient in discovering materials that are not only breakthroughs but actually usable for customers. This is what makes Dunia a true category leader in materials discovery.
The Team
Dunia’s founding team brings together deep expertise in AI, computational science, and chemistry automation
Alexander Hammer (CEO): Strong AI and computational background
Marcus Tze-Kiat Ng (CTO): Pioneer in automating chemistry experiments
Ahmed Ismail (COO): Industry experience as a catalyst researcher in oil and gas
When we spent time with the team, we were struck by their deep respect for one another and their shared vision. You can quickly see their commitment and teamwork. One memorable detail that stood out to us was the well-used office couch, that Ahmed uses as a guest bedroom (ala Elon Musk). It’s these small things that reflect their dedication to the mission.
Dunia’s Impact
Dunia’s platform is already making waves in catalyst development, with their technology validated through a proof-of-concept in electrocatalyst ink formulation that outperformed human researchers in both speed and performance. They are initially targeting Power-to-X electrocatalysts for applications like green hydrogen and ammonia production, as well as CO₂ conversion into higher-value chemicals. Given that 90% of chemical processes rely on catalysts, Dunia’s platform has massive potential to disrupt this market.
The global market for electrochemical technologies is projected to reach $1.5 trillion by 2050. Dunia’s ability to reduce the time needed for catalyst discovery — from decades to just a few years — positions them to play a crucial role in decarbonizing key industrial processes.
Our Co-Investors
We’re proud to be joined in this investment by other mission-aligned partners, including Elaia, Redalpine, Kindred Capital, Deep Science Ventures, and Sequoia Capital’s Scout Fund as we support Dunia in revolutionizing material discovery towards sustainable global energy transition.
At Pace, we back founders who make history. That’s why we’re thrilled to announce our investment in Dunia Innovations, a company using AI and chemical robotics to revolutionize material discovery to solve the critical bottleneck in the global energy transition.
The Opportunity
The electrification of heavy-emitting industrial processes presents a significant opportunity. As renewable energy becomes more accessible, electrification offers a cleaner and more flexible approach to running these processes. In green hydrogen production, where electricity accounts for 50–70% of costs, catalysts made from expensive materials like platinum and iridium are a major expense. Additionally, electrolyzer durability issues increase maintenance costs, making catalyst innovation crucial for reducing both CAPEX and OPEX.
Current catalyst development methods are slow and inefficient, relying on manual experiments and trial-and-error approaches. While AI has made some progress, existing physical simulations and in silico approaches have limitations, and available experimental datasets are insufficient to fully explore the possibilities.
Dunia Innovations addresses this bottleneck by integrating AI and chemical robotics to accelerate the discovery and testing of new materials, particularly catalysts. Their platform combines machine learning with high-throughput experimentation, creating a rapid feedback loop for iteration and data generation. This approach significantly reduces the time needed to discover new materials, from decades to just a few years.
Key Platform Features
The Dunia platform seamlessly integrates Machine Learning with robotics to unlock the power of AI to drive material discovery.
AI-driven material discovery: Dunia’s physics-informed AI accelerates the ideation process, enabling innovative, unbiased material design optimized for desired characteristics.
Chemical Robotics: Dunia’s cutting-edge robotic platform rapidly executes electrochemical experiments, meticulously capturing data to ensure traceable, reproducible results.
Self-driving labs: These labs automate the synthesis and testing process, allowing them to discover and validate new materials at an unprecedented pace. (That is why Pace loves this deal so much!)
They are not just improving the discovery process; they’re building a valuable, standardized dataset that gives them a significant advantage. This strong foundation allows their models to become more accurate and efficient in discovering materials that are not only breakthroughs but actually usable for customers. This is what makes Dunia a true category leader in materials discovery.
The Team
Dunia’s founding team brings together deep expertise in AI, computational science, and chemistry automation
Alexander Hammer (CEO): Strong AI and computational background
Marcus Tze-Kiat Ng (CTO): Pioneer in automating chemistry experiments
Ahmed Ismail (COO): Industry experience as a catalyst researcher in oil and gas
When we spent time with the team, we were struck by their deep respect for one another and their shared vision. You can quickly see their commitment and teamwork. One memorable detail that stood out to us was the well-used office couch, that Ahmed uses as a guest bedroom (ala Elon Musk). It’s these small things that reflect their dedication to the mission.
Dunia’s Impact
Dunia’s platform is already making waves in catalyst development, with their technology validated through a proof-of-concept in electrocatalyst ink formulation that outperformed human researchers in both speed and performance. They are initially targeting Power-to-X electrocatalysts for applications like green hydrogen and ammonia production, as well as CO₂ conversion into higher-value chemicals. Given that 90% of chemical processes rely on catalysts, Dunia’s platform has massive potential to disrupt this market.
The global market for electrochemical technologies is projected to reach $1.5 trillion by 2050. Dunia’s ability to reduce the time needed for catalyst discovery — from decades to just a few years — positions them to play a crucial role in decarbonizing key industrial processes.
Our Co-Investors
We’re proud to be joined in this investment by other mission-aligned partners, including Elaia, Redalpine, Kindred Capital, Deep Science Ventures, and Sequoia Capital’s Scout Fund as we support Dunia in revolutionizing material discovery towards sustainable global energy transition.