Chalmers-backed Swedish Algae Factory hopes to commercialise silicon materials made from a subtype of algae with qualities favourable to trapping light and blocking UV rays.

Swedish Algae Factory, a Sweden-based solar cell material manufacturer backed by Chalmers University of Technology, has received an unspecified sum from VC firm Walerud Ventures and private investor Jan Svärd.
The round also included other undisclosed, existing investors.
Founded in 2013, Swedish Algae Factory is working on silicon materials made from a unicellular, nanoporous form of algae known as a diatom that possesses silicified cell walls conducive to trapping light and blocking UV rays.
The approach will initially help Swedish Algae manufacture energy-efficient solar panel materials but could also underpin a natural UV filter for products including sunscreens and a moisture-control additive for cosmetic and skincare applications.
Swedish Algae believes oil from the diatom could be used a sustainable source of fish feed.
Swedish Algae Factory is led by Sofie Albert, a biotechnical engineering graduate from Chalmers University of Technology, whose university venture fund Chalmers Ventures supplied the company with Skr1.5m ($170,000) as part of a $400,000 round in May 2017.
VC firm Almi Invest also contributed $170,000 to the round, with the remaining $60,000 coming from the EU-supported InnoEnergy innovation program.
The company is based on research led by Angela Wulff, a professor of marine ecology at University of Gothenburg who took part in Chalmers-run accelerator Encubator.