DCVC and Voyager co-lead with support from In-Q-Tel and Orion to commercialize Alta’s advanced biochemistry platform for mineral separation
BOULDER, Colo., May 05, 2025–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Alta Resource Technologies, a pioneer in using advanced biochemistry to transform mineral separation, today announced that it has expanded its Series Seed funding to $10 million with the close of an additional $4.4 million investment. The Seed 2 investment was co-led by DCVC and Voyager Ventures with participation from Orion Industrial Ventures and In-Q-Tel (IQT), the not-for-profit strategic investor for the U.S. national security community and America’s allies.
The new capital will accelerate development and commercialization of Alta’s breakthrough platform, which uses engineered proteins to selectively bind to and separate critical minerals—including rare earth elements like neodymium and dysprosium—from low-grade ores and complex waste streams. The approach promises to dramatically reduce the environmental impact of mineral extraction while helping to secure domestic supply chains for essential materials used in advanced electronics, clean energy technologies, and modern defense systems.
The investment comes at a pivotal moment for critical-mineral supply chains, many of which are dominated by China. This concentration of control has raised alarms about economic and national security. Responding to the growing urgency around supply chain resilience, the White House issued an executive order in March 2025 aimed at boosting domestic mineral production and reducing U.S. reliance on fragile foreign supply chains. Alta’s technology offers a timely and scalable solution: a low-impact way to extract high-purity critical minerals from unconventional and previously uneconomic sources.
“Securing resilient, low-impact sources of critical minerals is no longer optional for America and its allies—it’s a strategic imperative,” said Nathan Ratledge, PhD, Alta’s Co-Founder and CEO. “Washington is beginning to respond with the kind of wartime urgency this moment demands, and Alta’s technology is uniquely positioned to deliver. Our protein-based platform gives the U.S. a scalable way to tap into unconventional mineral resources right here at home, while slashing both costs and environmental impact.”
Alta’s platform is based on protein engineering breakthroughs developed in partnership with Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and researchers at Pennsylvania State University. By customizing proteins to bind selectively to individual elements—even at low concentrations in complex mixtures—Alta’s solution offers far greater precision than conventional separation methods. The result is a step-change in the efficiency, sustainability, and economics of processing rare earths and other critical materials.
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