Sunlight powers life on our planet.
For plants, it drives photosynthesis - the process of taking water and carbon dioxide from the air to create glucose - the building block of energy and growth.
So - pretty important!
Less sunlight translates to less plant growth.
But, the opposite is also true - if you can increase light aborbed by plants, then the result is increased growth and crop yields.
Which is where our new investment Qarbotech comes in.
Co-founder Professor Dr Suraya Abdul Rashid, a leading researcher in nanotechnology, invented a way to produce and use carbon quantum dots for agricultural use.
This technology, which won the Nobel Prize for Chemistry last year, drives unique optical behaviours, allowing the dots to absorb and emit light of different wavelengths in controlled ways.
In a farming context, Qarbotech is creating a new type of input product, a photosynthesis enhancer enables plants to absorb more sunlight resulting in greater crop yields - in some cases up to 60%
And because yields are increased, less synthetic fertilizers are needed for a given amount of output.
Which is huge!
With fertilizers estimated to contribute between 2 and 3% of all global emissions, this has immense climate impact potential.
“Qarbotech embodies our commitment to support a more sustainable, climate-friendly food system through transformative technology - with their offering both improving economic outcomes whilst significantly lowering emissions. We are excited to back this dynamic team and their journey to transform the global food system,” said Michal Klar, Founding Partner at Better Bite Ventures.
Having proven the technology at smaller scales, Qarbotech is using this investment to scale up, opening its first manufacturing facility in Malaysia, which will be capable of producing 100,000 liters of QarboGrow monthly.
With an experienced business team led by CEO Chor Chee Hoe and COO Amirul Merican, the new funding will help power regional expansion including to Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam and beyond.
We're excited to get behind this dynamic team with breakthrough technology - to decrease emissions and boost outputs & livelihoods - all thanks to enhancing the power of the sun.