The last six months for Carbon Reform have included a seed round, an appearance on Forbes 30 Under 30 list, doubling headcount and now a new headquarters in Philadelphia.
The startup will take over 5,000 square feet of lab and office space at 401 N. Broad St., a part of the Netrality Data Centers network. It had been working out of the Innovation Space in Wilmington, and will still use a coworking space there.
Jo Norris, the CEO and co-founder, hopes Carbon Reform will be fully moved into the Philadelphia space by the end of the year. It could be part of a busy six months ahead for the startup, which is hoping to raise another fundraising round in the fall, Norris said, but didn't disclose a target number. Carbon Reform raised a $3 million seed round in November.
The startup was founded by Norris and Nick Martin — both University of Delaware alums — in February 2020 with a mission to "democratize access to carbon capture." The duo created a device that retrofits onto existing HVAC systems that heat, cool and ventilate buildings. It captures carbon and then stores it in mineral forms. Traditionally, carbon capture involves removing carbon emissions from the air and transporting and storing the captured carbon deep underground. It's usually energy intensive and hosted by a large power plant.
Norris said the decision to move to Philadelphia felt natural. Much of her 11-person team already lives in the city or its immediate surrounding areas, Norris said. She also feels Carbon Reform has begun to plant roots in the Philadelphia startup scene.
"Being in a proper city like Philadelphia is an important step for our growth," Norris said. "It's been helping a lot with recruitment efforts. It's a better location for people to want to move to, especially if they're coming from elsewhere in the country or in the world. We love our roots in Delaware, but I think Philadelphia is a little bit more enticing for younger tech crowds to congregate."
On the business side, Norris said that Philadelphia opens Carbon Reform up to more developers and companies with large real estate holdings that would be able to use Carbon Reform's technology on their buildings. Norris hopes to add a few more hires in the next few months, then "several more" after the company's next round of funding.
"Part of this move is really to build the space that we need now, but then also to potentially have somewhere to expand within the building after our next funding round," Norris said.
The historic 401 N. Broad St. building spans 1.3 million square feet and includes several health care and tech companies. Other tenants at the 11-story building on the corner of Broad and Callowhill streets include diagnostic startup Biomeme Inc., London-based biotech company Achilles Therapeutics and Nerd Street Gamers.
