Rio Tinto, Founders Factory’s Mining Tech Accelerator invests in startups from US and OZ

The Mining Tech Accelerator, a partnership between early-stage investor Founders Factory and Rio Tinto (ASX: RIO), announced Wednesday its latest six investments in technologies that are accelerating and decarbonizing the mining value chain.

The partnership is looking for breakthrough technologies, and plans to invest in 12 startups annually from around the world. The amount of the investments was not disclosed.

The six companies, which span from Silicon Valley to MIT to Western Australia, break new ground in the industry’s journey into a provider of materials for a net zero world, the companies said.

This year’s six investments are: Rock Zero—zero-waste, cost-efficient process to extract lithium from hard rock deposits in Cambridge, US; Terra AI—for mineral exploration to reduce drilling costs and improve accuracy in Palo Alto, US; Ekion—electrokinetic in-situ recovery (EK-ISR) technology to extract metals from stranded deposits with minimal waste and emissions in Perth, Australia; Rainstick—agriculture and nature restoration using electrical fields to mimic the natural effects of lightning, boosting seed yields faster and more sustainably from Cairns, Australia; Thunderstone—reduced-impact mining using underground electric stimulation to extract critical metals with minimal waste and cost based in the US, and Durin—automated drilling rigs to accelerate mineral discovery and reduce exploration costs in Los Angeles.

“Working with Rio Tinto has given us tremendous insight into key opportunities for innovation across the mining value chain, represented by these six promising investments,” Founders Factory president George Northcott said in a statement.

“Reduced-impact mining sits front and centre for the business, as they look for more efficient, less environmentally-impacting methods for the discovery and extraction of critical metals. It’s clear this represents a transformational change for the industry, paving the way for industrial transformation and decarbonization.”

As well as receiving seed capital, the startups will enter a four-month accelerator program, operated by Founders Factory, aiming to help founders identify clear use cases for their technology and pathways to commercialization with Rio Tinto.

This includes operational support, direct access to Rio Tinto’s executives, and opportunities to pitch pilots and POCs to their team, including a residential program in Perth.

“Collaborating with startups gives us access to innovative ideas, diverse skill sets, and rapid solutions. Through our Mining Tech Accelerator, Founders Factory and Rio Tinto are partnering with startups to develop breakthrough technologies that tackle key challenges in mining and sustainability,” Rio Tinto’s chief innovation officer Dan Walker said. 

“Meeting the growing global energy demand is deeply complex, and collaboration is essential to delivering the materials the world needs—faster, more sustainably, and more cost-effectively.”

The previous cohort, which kicked off in September 2024, included investments in US-based Endolith, developing next-gen copper extraction and Cambridge University spinout Prospectral, which makes ultra compact imaging sensors for material detection.