Level Nine

📢 VOICES OF STARTUP BERLIN - a conversation with Emily Sheridan (Co-Founder & CTO), one of the Berlin winners of #WomenTechEU What is Level Nine about? At Level Nine, we leverage bio-nanotechnology and quantum chemistry to develop next-generation catalysts to enable the green chemicals of tomorrow. Inspired by nature, our nanozymes are advanced enzyme active site mimics that bridge the gap between traditional catalysts and enzymes to unlock new possibilities in green chemicals production. Our first nanozymes unlock new ways to cost-effectively convert biomass into renewable chemicals, replacing fossil fuels as the world’s primary chemical feedstock. Why is #Berlin the perfect place for DeepTech startups? Berlin (and Germany in general) has a rich history of turning scientific breakthroughs into successful businesses, especially in green chemistry and catalysis, which is the sector we’re in. Berlin has three excellent technical universities, and lots of networks and programs to help entrepreneurs turn their scientific ideas into successful startups. It’s also a great place to live, which helps when you’re a growing team like ours and you want to attract talented people from abroad. Which 3 formats in Berlin have helped you most on this journey so far? We’ve benefited hugely from the INAM - Innovation Network for Advanced Materials and their AdMaLab program, and from our collaboration with Humboldt-Innovation and in particular our relationship with Prof. Emil List-Kratochvil. Through the great network and facilities of Berlin Partner für Wirtschaft und Technologie GmbH we’ve also made some incredibly valuable connections.    What is your vision for the Berlin #startup ecosystem?  We’d love to see a lot more #deeptech startups in Berlin grow very successful. When other startups succeed, it makes everything easier for the rest, it puts Berlin on the map as a hub where talented people want to move and where investors want to invest. There’s some great examples already, and I think we’ll see a lot more in the coming years. Thank you Level Nine! ⚡ Berlin is committed to transform into a #CityOfDeepTech, #CityOfImpact, #CityOfTalents, #CityOfCooperation, #CityOfDiversity and #CityOfEnablement. Find out more: https://lnkd.in/gnEDMHK8

It’s been an eventful autumn at Level Nine! In November, our co-founder & CEO, Seadna Quigley, took the stage twice as part of the Berlin Science Week to showcase our breakthrough nanozyme technology: 🏆 The Falling Walls Foundation 𝗦𝗰𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗦𝘂𝗺𝗺𝗶𝘁, where we were chosen as a Winner in the Climate category! 🧪 The INAM - Innovation Network for Advanced Materials - 𝗖𝗶𝗿𝗰𝘂𝗹𝗮𝗿 𝗘𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗼𝗺𝘆 event. And in December, we were on the road again, this time in Belgium to join: 🌳 𝗕𝗶𝗼𝗿𝗶𝘇𝗼𝗻 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲, hosted by TNO and VITO 🏗️ 𝗣𝗶𝘁𝗰𝗵 𝗣𝗲𝗿𝗳𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝗕𝗶𝗼𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗼𝗺𝘆 𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗻𝘁, hosted by our friends at Bio Base Europe Pilot Plant A big thank-you to the organisers and congratulations to all the other startups and people doing amazing work to enable a more circular and biobased chemicals industry! And for those of you who missed us, we look forward to seeing you in the new year!

A busy month at L/9: We’re incredibly excited to welcome Soniya Ahammad, PhD to our team of 𝗖𝗮𝘁𝗮𝗹𝘆𝘀𝘁 𝗦𝗰𝗶𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝘀𝘁𝘀! Soniya is an experienced bioinorganic chemist who is comfortable both in the lab as well as with advanced computational chemistry programs. During her PhD in Marseille she was focused on the design and development of complex enzyme-like catalysts capable of valorizing CO2. At L/9 she’ll bring her deep expertise in bio-inspired catalysis to bear on the design of our next-generation nanozyme catalysts to create the green chemicals of tomorrow. 🎉 Welcome Soniya, it’s great to have you on board!

A warm welcome to our newest team member, Victoria Nahmod Alvarez, who has joined as a 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗖𝗵𝗲𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘁. Victoria is an experienced materials scientist specialised in the production of biobased materials. At L/9 she’ll be working closely with our partners and clients to optimize and scale up the processes that use our nanozymes to convert lignin into renewable chemical building blocks. 🙌 Welcome, Victoria!

We’re excited to share that Level Nine has been awarded ~€1 million in public innovation funding from Investitionsbank Berlin and the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) to support the development and commercialization of our next-generation catalyst technology. This funding represents a crucial milestone for us as we work to create a greener and cleaner chemicals industry. It will support the development of our nanozyme technology, as well as the computational design and development platform which will allow us to rapidly develop new catalysts to solve a wide range of problems across the chemicals industry. At Level Nine, we leverage bio-nanotechnology and quantum chemistry to develop the world’s first nanozymes, next-generation catalysts that bridge the gap between traditional catalysts and enzymes to unlock new possibilities for green chemicals production. Our first nanozymes convert waste streams into renewable chemical building blocks, reducing the world's reliance on fossil fuels. Find out more about what we’re up to on our website: www.levelninelabs.com

We're happy to share that our co-founder & CTO, Emily Sheridan, has been selected as a winner for the Women TechEU program! This amazing EU-funded program supports women working in deep tech startups across Europe. It comes with six months of tailored services and €75k in non-dilutive funding to support us as we develop our next-generation catalyst technology. Find out more about the program and the winner profiles here: https://lnkd.in/d-9SM999

Exciting news! 𝗟𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹 𝗡𝗶𝗻𝗲 is a finalist for the 𝗙𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗪𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘀 𝗦𝗰𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗕𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗸𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗬𝗲𝗮𝗿 award, an annual competition recognizing early-stage startups bringing cutting-edge science into the world. Our CEO, Seadna Quigley, will be on stage at the Falling Walls Summit in Berlin this November to talk about the exciting possibilities of our groundbreaking nanozyme technology to create the green chemicals of tomorrow. Let us know if you're attending, we'd love to connect!

𝗘𝘅𝗰𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗷𝗼𝗶𝗻 𝗟𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹 𝗡𝗶𝗻𝗲! Our team is growing, and we're looking for ambitious scientists to join us on our mission to decarbonize the chemicals industry! At Level Nine, we’re developing next-generation catalysts that can enable the molecules of tomorrow. Based in Berlin, we are a diverse and multidisciplinary team, with backgrounds in bio-nanotechnology, organic chemistry, quantum chemistry, and origins of life. 𝗪𝗲 𝗰𝘂𝗿𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗹𝘆 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝘁𝘄𝗼 𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀: 🔸𝗖𝗮𝘁𝗮𝗹𝘆𝘀𝘁 𝗦𝗰𝗶𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝘀𝘁: Play a critical role in the development and commercialization of novel next-gen catalysts for a wide range of novel applications and chemistries. See the full job description here: https://t.ly/iRRCc 🔹(𝗕𝗶𝗼)𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗖𝗵𝗲𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘁: Help us bring our first application to life by optimizing process conditions for commercial scale. See the full job description here: https://t.ly/b5LXs If you’re an ambitious scientist looking to work at a fast-growing startup and make a real-world impact, and you think you’re the right fit for us, we want to hear from you! To learn more about working at Level Nine and how to apply, visit our Careers page: https://t.ly/OooZa #LevelNine #Hiring #Supramolecular #Nanotechnology #ScienceJobs #Berlin #QuantumChemistry

Our Co-Founder and CTO, Emily Sheridan, will join a panel discussion at next week's Metabolic Networking alongside industry leaders from Girls in Tech - Germany, Thermo Fisher Scientific and Cambrium. The evening is hosted by our friends at Cambrium HQ. Emily and the other panelists will be discussing the challenges in commercializing biotech products. Join for insightful discussions, networking opportunities, and a fun summer evening with food, drinks, and music! Free tickets are limited, so grab yours now!

Level Nine had a whirlwind couple of days at Deep Tech Momentum in Berlin last week. Over three days, we met with some hugely impressive founders, investors, and operators from the thriving European Deep Tech scene. The week was doubly exciting for us as we were chosen for not one, but two Acceleration Prizes in the Climate Tech Startup Competition! We’re very grateful to Thong Le Hoang at TOMORROW and Clément Vanden Driessche at Elaia for the recognition and support. These awards will be incredibly valuable for us as we continue to build our next-generation catalyst technology to help enable a renewable chemicals industry. Big thanks also to the Deep Tech Momentum team for putting on a great event! If you missed us at DTM or couldn’t make it and you’d like to learn more about how we’re enabling a more sustainable future, check out our website (www.levelninelabs.com) or reach out to our co-founder, Seadna! #DeepTechMomentum #DeepTech #ClimateTech