Vinnova
Mäster Samuelsgatan 56, Stockholm, Stockholms Lan, SE-101 58, Sweden
Overview
Vinnova is Sweden's government agency for innovation. Our mission is to contribute to sustainable growth by improving the conditions for innovation. We do this mainly by funding innovation projects and the research needed to develop new solutions. We also invest long term in strong research and innovation environments. We stimulate collaborations between companies, universities and other higher education institutions, public services, civil society and other actors. Our activities also focus on strengthening international cooperation. Each year, Vinnova invests around $350 millions in fostering innovation. Most of these funds are allocated via calls for proposals in which companies, public sector actors and other organisations apply for funding. All investments are continuously monitored and evaluated and we regularly analyse the impacts of our investments.
- Total investments
- 2
- Lead investments
- 0
- Investments · 12mo
- 1
- Active investors
- 8
Sector focus
- Communities
- Finance
- Financial Services
- Government
- Health Care
- Universities
Investment portfolio
- AirForestry
Participated · Grant · Jul 2026
AirForestry develops drone-based systems for tree harvesting and automated forestry operations. In 2026 the company completed several technical milestones, including the world’s first drone-based tree harvest in a production forest and multi-tree automated harvest sequences on its test field. To scale development it secured €1.8M in commitments from four leading forest companies and a €4.4M Vinnova grant for the PADA project with partners such as Skogforsk, SLU, SCA, Sveaskog, Stora Enso, Holmen Skog, Tele2, and IKEA. The announced funding is designated to advance the company’s harvesting technology and related development work. The company also reported recruiting additional team members to support its growth. No revenue, user metrics, founding year, location, prior funding rounds, or valuation were disclosed in the articles.
- Wastefront
Participated · Grant · Nov 2022
Wastefront operates pyrolytic reactors that use thermal depolymerisation (pyrolysis) to break down end-of-life tyres and produce recovered carbon black (rCB) and pyrolysis oil. Its South Tyneside (Sunderland) plant is a £100 million project planned to be fully operational by 2025 and will convert material equivalent to 20% of the UK’s annual ELT supply into rCB. Integrating Wastefront’s rCB into new tyres is projected to reduce emissions for each tyre by 80%. The company aims to scale via licensing its ‘‘Wastefront Blueprint’’ and deploying multiple plants globally in partnership with industrial players. Wastefront has entered a strategic partnership with VTTI that includes an investment and commitments to develop additional sites. The market for carbon black and related products is expected to grow from $13 billion in 2022 to $18 billion by 2029, a tailwind cited in the announcement. Wastefront emphasizes turning a large global waste problem into saleable products sought in the energy transition. Wastefront operates pyrolytic reactors that use thermal depolymerisation (pyrolysis) to break down end-of-life tyres and produce recovered carbon black (rCB) and tyre-derived oil (TDO). The company is collaborating with Swedish engineering firm Hulteberg Chemistry & Engineering on HYFUEL, a project to purify pyrolysis oil for use as a renewable biofuel. HYFUEL’s optimised tyre pyrolysis oil can substitute for diesel without further refining, enabling lower-temperature applications, cost savings, and reduced carbon emissions. Wastefront has secured a €2 million grant and total project funding of €2.076 million to advance HYFUEL's use cases. The firm is building a £100 million tyre recycling plant in Sunderland, Northern England, due to be fully operational by 2025. The South Tyneside plant aims to process about 20% of the UK's end-of-life tyres and produce rCB, which Wastefront says can reduce emissions for tyres made with its rCB by 80%.