Clutching a plush shark, Alec Brewer, the co-founder and CEO of Ourobio, beamed Tuesday from the stage at the Byrd Theatre. The cuddly sea hunter marked his company as winner of a $1,500 cash prize for a “Shark Tank”-style competition at the the Lighthouse Labs Demo Day showcase.
“The cash is critical to us right now,” said Brewer. “We’ve remained entirely bootstrapped up until this point. Every dollar counts. So, we’re very appreciative of the cash prize.”
Ourobio, previously known as Transfoam, is a Charlottesville company that uses engineered microorganisms to turn industrial byproducts into a low-footprint, bio-based polymer. Put more simply, the company takes industrial waste and turns it into a biodegradable plastic-like substance. It is focusing on making the spools used in the consumer 3D printing filament space, but Ourobio’s founders have an eye on consumer food service products manufacturing.
“This plastic uniquely is not only degradable in the soil and dirt,…
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