Rare earth element recycler Cyclic Materials to expand after $53M Series B funding round
A Canadian company called Cyclic Materials is working to create a circular supply chain for rare earth elements (REEs) using advanced recycling processes. The company just secured $53 million via a Series B equity round to accelerate its global expansion and recycling infrastructure.
Cyclic Materials was founded in Toronto in the fall of 2021 following a successful seed round. From there, the Rare Earth Element (REE) recycling specialist began developing and scaling its proprietary technology capable of economically and sustainably recovering critical raw materials from end-of-life EV motors, wind turbines, MRI machines, and other electronic waste.
Rather than focus on one particular component, such as batteries, the company specializes in recycling rare earth magnets – a type of permanent magnet made from alloys of rare earth elements, which are part of a set of seventeen chemical elements in the periodic table. To do so, Cyclic Materials has already introduced its “Mag-Cycle” (Spoke) and “REEPure” (Hub) processes and has proven their capabilities at the bench scale.
Following a REEPure pilot in the fall of 2022, Cyclic Materials has proven its continuous magnet processing capacity of 10 Tons per year, which is plausible. This milestone caught the attention of several outside investors who joined a successful series A funding round in the spring of 2023, including BMW i Ventures (BiV), Energy Impact Partners (EIP), as well as government funding from the Sustainable Development Technology Council of Canada (SDTC).
Since then, the company has launched a Mag-Cycle pilot facility with a design capacity of 8,000 tons per year, as well as a REEPure commercial demonstration facility with a magnet processing design capacity of 100 tons of rare earth elements per year.
Today, Cyclic Materials announced another successful round of funding totaling $53 million.
Cyclic gains more funding to recycle rare earth materials
According to a release from Cyclic Materials this morning, it has completed an oversubscribed Series B equity round totaling $53 million. The latest round was led by ArcTern Ventures and welcomed new investors such as BDC Capital’s Climate Tech Fund, Hitachi Ventures, and Microsoft’s Climate Innovation Fund. Existing investors like Fifth Wall, BMW i Ventures, Energy Impact Partners, and Planetary Technologies also participated.
With its Series B round now complete, Cyclic Materials has raised $83 million to date. It intends to use the capital to establish rare earth element recycling infrastructure in the US and Europe and grow its internal team. Company co-founder and CEO Ahmad Ghahreman elaborated:
We’re energized to partner with the world’s top sustainability-focused infrastructure and corporate investors to scale our technology’s impact. This funding underscores the confidence in our ability to create the circular economy for rare earths needed for the clean energy transition. Not only is our technology essential for supporting sustainable domestic production of rare earths, but it will also play a critical role in re-establishing North American and European leadership in the rare earths industry.
Much like benefits touted by other rare earth element recyclers like Redwood Materials, for example, Cyclic Materials’ magnet recycling process delivers significant environmental benefits compared to traditional mining processes, including a reduced carbon footprint and “unparalleled water efficiency.”
Cyclic Material’s successful Series B funding joins a recent $3.6 million grant awarded by Natural Resources Canada. Both combine to support the continued operation of Cyclic Materials’ “Hub100” commercial demonstration facility (seen above), which produces high-purity rare earth elements from recycled magnet material.
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Environment
NYC’s new 15 MPH speed limit for e-bikes goes into effect next month, but cars still get a pass
New York City’s new 15 mph speed limit for electric bikes is officially set to take effect next month, in what city officials claim is a move to improve street safety. But not everyone is convinced the crackdown is targeting the real threat on the roads.
The new limit, approved earlier this year, applies to e-bikes, mopeds, and other micromobility vehicles operating in city bike lanes. Riders caught exceeding 15 mph could face warnings or citations, though the exact enforcement strategy remains murky. The NYPD says it will focus on “education first,” but given the city’s track record, that could just be the calm before the ticket storm.
The rule comes amid growing concerns from some residents and officials about rising speeds among e-bike riders, especially delivery workers who often rely on throttle-equipped bikes to meet tight deadlines. But while the new speed cap is aimed at micromobility vehicles, there’s a noticeable omission: cars, trucks, and SUVs, which continue to be allowed to travel at 25 mph – and in practice, often much faster – even though they pose exponentially more risk to vulnerable road users and are responsible for orders of magnitude more deaths each year.
It’s a move that raises eyebrows and has resulted in thousands of publicly-submitted comments that the New York Department of Transportation has seemingly ignored.
After all, the majority of traffic fatalities in New York City don’t involve e-bikes. They involve cars. And while some e-bike riders certainly ride irresponsibly, the blanket limit nearly cuts in half the more widely accepted e-bike speed limits used around the US, and doesn’t even apply to pedal bikes, which can easily exceed such speeds despite nearly identical average weights when factoring in the vehicle and rider. Not to mention, it ignores the critical role that e-bikes play in reducing traffic congestion and emissions, especially in the delivery and commuting sectors.
So while New York is slowing down its most efficient and sustainable form of urban transport, it’s letting the real heavyweights keep their speed. If the goal is safety, then it’s fair to ask: why aren’t cars being asked to go 15 mph too?
Because once again, it seems the rules are written for the powerful – not the vulnerable.
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Environment
Tesla is now buying ads on Elon Musk’s X to get people to vote for his $1 trillion compensation
Tesla is now buying advertising on Elon Musk’s X (formerly Twitter) to get Tesla shareholders to vote for his CEO compensation package worth up to $1 trillion in stock options.
Tesla, under Elon Musk’s leadership, has famously been against advertising. The CEO is even on the record saying that he “hates advertising” and that “other companies spend money on advertising and manipulating public opinion, Tesla focuses on the product.”
However, that was before he acquired Twitter, now X, which relies heavily on advertising.
After that, he started to push Tesla to do some advertising, but the company quickly stopped or greatly reduced its advertising efforts.
We reported that Tesla’s advertising effort picked back up last week, starting with a few Google ads to encourage Tesla shareholders to vote for Musk’s new unprecedented CEO compensation package worth up to $1 trillion.
The automaker is in a full-on marketing blitz to convince shareholders to vote for the package and to allow Tesla to issue more shares in exchange.
Now, Tesla is even buying social media ads to push shareholders to vote for Musk’s compensation package and they are even buying ads on Musk’s privately owned platform, X:
They are also buying ads on Instagram, Facebook, and Reddit.
As we previously reported, Tesla’s board has claimed that voting for the compensation package will determine the future of Tesla.
Musk went even further and linked his compensation package to the future of the world.
Earlier today, the CEO claimed that his compensation plan is not about money, but about control over Tesla:
It’s not about “compensation”, but about me having enough influence over Tesla to ensure safety if we build millions of robots. If I can just get kicked out in the future by activist shareholder advisory firms who don’t even own Tesla shares themselves, I’m not comfortable with that future.
The CEO previously threatened Tesla shareholders not to build AI products at Tesla, despite claiming they were critical to the company’s future, if he doesn’t get 25% control over the company.
Electrek’s Take
The CEO of a publicly traded company threatens shareholders to gain control over the company and uses company funds to purchase ads that benefit his privately held company, with the goal of persuading the shareholders of the publicly traded company to give him more money.
If that’s not late-stage capitalism, I don’t know what is.
Also, I know I won’t shock anyone here, but Elon is lying about this not being about money.
If he wants to increase his percentage of Tesla shares, he could do exactly what his friend Larry Ellison did with Oracle and do long-term buybacks. It would benefit everyone, but it’s not what he wants. He wants the shiny new stock options.
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