PomegraUniSieve, the Zurich membrane startup, closed a $9 million Series A on October 8, 2026, led by Orano Venture Fund. The money will expand production of molecular-sieve membranes for olefin production and carbon capture.
Key Takeaways
- UniSieve raised a $9M Series A led by Orano Venture Fund, managed by Supernova Invest. Valuation was not disclosed.
- Total funding is now $25M, up from $16M before this round.
- Its MOF and zeolite membranes target olefin production and point-source carbon capture.
Lead
UniSieve, an ETH Zurich spin-off founded in 2018, announced a $9 million Series A on October 8, 2026. Orano Venture Fund, managed by Supernova Invest, led the round. Amadeus APEX Technology Fund, Founderful, Zürcher Kantonalbank and Guenat Holding also participated, a mix of new and existing backers. The company did not disclose its valuation.
The funding lifts UniSieve's total capital raised to $25 million. It will go toward expanding production capacity and extending the technology into additional industrial applications.
What Does UniSieve Actually Build?
UniSieve builds membranes that separate molecules without heating them. The membranes use metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) and zeolites, porous materials whose pore sizes act as molecular sieves, letting one gas pass while blocking another.
The target is thermal separation, such as distillation, which dominates chemical plants. Molecular separation accounts for an estimated 10 to 15 percent of global energy consumption, and most of that is heat. A membrane that does the same job at room-scale energy cost would cut a large line item for plant operators.
The founders, CEO Samuel Hess and Elia Schneider, met as ETH Zurich students. The hard part has been manufacturing: MOFs and zeolites work well in the lab but are difficult to form into durable, defect-free membranes at industrial scale. UniSieve's pitch is that it has solved enough of that problem to sell units.
Where Is the Technology Being Used?
The technology is in use in two applications: olefin separation and point-source carbon capture. Olefins such as ethylene and propylene feed plastics manufacturing, and splitting them from similar molecules is among the most energy-hungry steps in the process.
On carbon capture, Qemetica, the Polish chemicals company formerly known as CIECH, is live-testing a UniSieve CO2 capture unit. Investors describe the company as pre-commercial in both applications, with field-validated performance, repeatable manufacturing and pilot deployments that include paying customers. Revenue was not disclosed, and so was team size.
What Does This Round Say About the Previous Funding?
The round adds $9 million to a $16 million base, a measured step rather than a leap. A Series A of this size for a hardware company suggests investors are funding a transition from pilots to repeatable production, not a large capacity build-out. Industrial membrane manufacturing typically demands more capital than a software-style Series A, so a larger round will likely follow if pilots convert.
The lead investor choice is informative. Orano, the French nuclear fuel and materials group, backs the round through its venture arm, which signals strategic interest in separation technology beyond carbon capture. Orano has not said what that interest covers. Zürcher Kantonalbank's presence adds local, institutional money alongside deep-tech specialists.
Supernova Invest's Jonathan Grosskopf said the founders showed "a remarkable ability to turn a highly complex technological breakthrough into a solution." Wolfgang Neubert, general partner at APEX Ventures, said the company shows "a clear path from proven technology to meaningful commercial scale." Both are investor statements, and customer contracts will be the real test.
How Crowded Is the Field?
The field is crowded on the capture side and thinner on olefins. In carbon capture, UniSieve competes with solid-sorbent players such as Canada's Svante and ARK Capture Solutions, as well as the incumbent amine-scrubbing systems that most plants still use. Membranes have a structural advantage in footprint and energy use, but they must prove durability and selectivity across years of operation in dirty industrial gas streams.
Olefin separation is a different contest. The incumbent is cryogenic distillation, which is entrenched, capital-intensive and rarely replaced outside new builds or major retrofits. Plant operators move slowly, and a membrane has to fit into existing process trains before it can displace anything.
What Comes Next?
The near-term milestones are conversion of pilots into commercial orders and a ramp in production capacity. If the Qemetica test and the olefin deployments hold up on performance data, UniSieve can argue for a larger growth round. If membrane lifetime or manufacturing yield falls short, the company would remain a pilot-stage supplier in markets that reward track record.
Carbon capture demand remains tied to policy, including carbon pricing in Europe, which affects how quickly industrial customers pay for capture hardware. Olefin applications depend less on regulation and more on energy costs, which makes them a steadier commercial test.
Outlook
UniSieve has $25 million in total funding, a strategic lead investor and live field tests in two markets. Valuation, revenue and customer count remain undisclosed. The next 12 to 18 months of pilot data and production yields will show whether its membranes can displace heat-based separation at scale.