Dragonfly raises £1M to make silica aerogels cheaper to produce
What's the deal? Dragonfly Advanced MaterialsDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, a Northumberland-based advanced materials startup, has raised £1 million in early-stage funding. The round comprises £500,000 from Northstar VenturesDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → and a £500,000 grant from Innovate UKDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →'s investor partnership programme.
What does it do? The Newcastle UniversityDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → spinout manufactures silica aerogels — a material that combines low density with strong insulation, fire retardancy and water resistance. Its patented process simplifies production and cuts reliance on expensive, environmentally challenging solvents.
Why now? Cost and production complexity have long constrained wider adoption of aerogels. Dragonfly says its scalable approach lets formulations be tailored to customers across coatings, energy, construction, transport and industrial manufacturing.
Where's the money going? The funding will increase production capacity, grow the sales and development team, and support work with industrial partners as Dragonfly moves toward future licensing agreements. It is also completing a new Northumberland manufacturing facility to supply larger volumes for customer validation.
Who's backing it? Northstar Ventures invested from the North East Spinout Inspire FundDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, a £22.5 million fund backed by the universities of Durham, Newcastle, Northumbria, Sunderland and Teesside, plus the North East Mayoral Strategic AuthorityDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →. The fund was set up to commercialise research from the region's five universities.
What's the endgame? Since spinning out in 2020, Dragonfly has expanded to three patents and grown its production capability. "With the majority of our scale-up infrastructure now in place, our focus is increasingly on customer adoption, commercialisation, licensing opportunities and creating long-term shareholder value," the company said.
The signal: The round reflects a regional push to turn university research into deep-tech businesses. Northstar called Dragonfly "a great example of the region's ability to generate Deep Tech businesses that can address major industrial challenges."
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Image credit: Idaho National Laboratory
