🧱 70 ways to decarbonize cement

Cement is the backbone of modern infrastructure, used to make concrete the most-used man-made material in the world.

It is both indispensable and unsustainable. In fact, if the cement industry were a country, it would be the third largest emitter in the world (behind China and the US), responsible for roughly 8% of global CO₂ emissions, releasing nearly one ton of CO₂ for every ton of cement produced.

Unlike in energy generation or transportation, decarbonizing cement isn’t as simple as electrification. Much of its emissions come from the calcination of limestone, an intrinsic chemical reaction that releases CO₂.

Addressing this requires rethinking the material from the ground up with new feedstocks, alternative chemistries, process electrification, and carbon capture integration.

But where there is a challenge there is also opportunity, as we track 70+ startups and scaleups across the value chain who are decarbonizing cement.

Plus: Join Brimstone’s Co-Founder and CEO, Cody Finke at the HackSummit on December 10-11th to hear his journey to produce Portland cement, SCM, and smelter-grade alumina as well as his plant’s potential to be the next American source of alumina in a generation.

In this week’s edition:

• 73 Cement Decarbonization Startups

• 12 Founders and VC Weigh in on Alt Cement

• Cody Finke of Brimstone joins HackSummit

🧱 73 Cement Decarbonization Startups

From algae-grown limestone and converting carbon to minerals to large-scale 3D printing and enzyme-powered ‘mineral glue’, we uncover 70+ startups reimagining the materials that shape our cities.

Bold Founders and their teams are engineering powders that could upend the industry, building AI-driven systems that optimize low-carbon production at scale, and scaling biotech that turns waste and CO₂ into building blocks for the cities of tomorrow.

Together, these 70+ innovators showcase new ways to decarbonize cement and reinvent industry.

💡 12 Bright Minds Behind Alt Cement

Innovators are transforming cement from the inside out, with investors providing the capital to scale. We caught up with 12 frontrunners to hear their approach to decarbonizing one of the world’s hardest-to-abate industries.

By turning indoor air CO₂ into concrete, converting flue gas, waste glass, mine tailings and steel slag into high-performance building materials, and optimizing low-clinker cement with AI, these startups are tackling emissions at every stage of production.

Hear directly from the Investors and Founders who share opportunities and their potential impact: 2150, Alcemy, BAIE Minerals, Carbon Upcycling, Cocoon, Concrete Transition Capital, Decarbon, Queens Carbon, Re-Bind, Sustained Carbon, Thalo Labs and Urban Mining Industries.

🎤 Alumina and Cement Decarbonization

Brimstone is on a mission to transform heavy industry for a more sustainable and prosperous future. Its patented Rock Refinery® process co-produces multiple industry-standard materials—including ordinary portland cement (OPC), supplementary cementitious materials (SCM), and alumina—all from a single globally abundant, carbon-free rock.

The Brimstone process leverages the power of co-production, a tried-and-true strategy used throughout history, to produce industry-standard materials more efficiently, economically, and sustainably. 

Recently, Brimstone announced a new commercial agreement with Amazon, reserving annual volumes of Brimstone’s low-carbon cement and SCM from its forthcoming plant.

Next up, Cody Finke, Co-Founder and CEO of Brimstone sits down with Rachel Slaybaugh, Partner at DCVC at the HackSummit to share his journey to tackle some of the world’s hardest-to-abate industries, starting with cement. 

⚒️ Join the Reindustrialization Discussion at the HackSummit

Deep Tech innovations are unlocking new frontiers in climate and industrial decarbonization and will take centre stage at the HackSummit this December forging the future of steel, cement and materials discovery.

If you’re working in the space and looking to connect with other like minded builders, policy makers, investors and insiders, let’s make sure you’re a part of the conversation at Newlab in New York on December 10-11th.

See you there,

Laura at Hack

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