Liquid X

About Liquid X

Liquid X Printed Metals, Inc. operates as an advanced materials manufacturer specializing in functional metallic inks for the printed electronics industry. The company spun out of Carnegie Mellon University in 2010, founded by Dr. Richard McCullough and John Belot. The founding technology stemmed from research that began in late 2007 within Dr. McCullough's lab at Carnegie Mellon, where he and visiting professor Dr. Belot explored methods to create liquid metals. Dr. McCullough, an internationally recognized expert in organic electronics, brought a deep academic and entrepreneurial background to the venture, having previously co-founded Plextronics Inc. and holding numerous leadership roles at Carnegie Mellon and later Harvard and Florida State University. The company is now led by President and CEO Greg Babe, a seasoned executive with decades of experience, including a tenure as President and CEO of Bayer Corporation.

The core of Liquid X's business is its proprietary particle-free ink technology. Unlike conventional metallic inks that use nanoparticles or flakes, which can cause printer clogging and instability, Liquid X's inks dissolve metal at the atomic level into a water-based solvent system. This approach creates a stable, clear liquid that converts to a highly conductive, durable, and thin metal film upon curing. Key benefits include superior processability on various commercial printing platforms (like inkjet, flexography, and aerosol jet), excellent adhesion to a wide range of substrates including fabrics and polymers, and enhanced sustainability due to the water-based formulation. The company's business model has evolved from solely manufacturing and supplying these inks to acting as a strategic partner and R&D arm for its customers. Liquid X collaborates with manufacturers to take an application from concept to commercialization, offering services in design, prototyping, and pilot-scale production.

Liquid X serves business-to-business clients within the electronics sector, helping them develop functional components for a diverse set of applications. These applications include resistive heating elements, smart textiles for health and fitness, EMI shielding, biosensors, LED circuitry, and transparent conductors for touchscreens. The company has secured over $10 million in funding across multiple rounds from investors such as Matthews International, Innovation Works, and Newlin Investment Company. This capital has supported the expansion of its product portfolio, which now includes gold and metal alloy inks, and the enhancement of its in-house design and prototyping capabilities to support its growing client base.