Oxyle raises $16m to lead fight against water contaminating "forever chemicals"
When Fajer Mushtaq turned on the tap as a child in Delhi, one question always loomed: was the water safe? Today, that same question haunts communities worldwide as PFAS – toxic "forever chemicals" used in everything from non-stick pans to firefighting foam – contaminate water supplies at an alarming rate. Today, Swiss startup Oxyle has announced a $16 million funding round to scale its breakthrough solution to destroy, not just relocate, PFAS from wastewater. This builds on its $3 million pre-seed round in 2022, growing support for its mission.
The seed round was led by 360 Capital, with participation from Axeleo Capital and returning investors Founderful and SOSV.
Industries have long struggled with PFAS treatment. Current methods like filtration and adsorption merely move PFAS from water to other waste streams, requiring expensive incineration or landfilling that risks these chemicals leaching back into the environment through air or soil – creating an endless cycle of contamination. While some technologies can destroy PFAS, their massive energy requirements make them financially impractical for most organisations to implement at scale.
Oxyle's breakthrough technology represents the world's first economical and permanent solution to PFAS contamination. Unlike traditional methods that merely filter or concentrate these chemicals, Oxyle's system destroys PFAS molecules, achieving over 99% elimination rates while consuming at least 15 times less energy than alternative destruction methods. The system's three-stage process combines foam fractionation, catalytic destruction, and real-time monitoring powered by machine learning – all housed in a modular system that eliminates the need for secondary waste disposal through incineration or landfilling. Whereas traditional solutions require weeks-long lab analysis, Oxyle's proprietary monitoring system provides instant feedback and continuous treatment optimisation.
“Five years ago, Oxyle was two of us founders and one big idea: get rid of forever chemicals from our water. Today, that idea is proven, implemented, and ready to scale. This funding is a game-changer. It gives us what we need to take our technology to the industries and communities that need it most. To our investors, old and new, thank you for joining us on this mission to make clean water a reality for all,” said Dr Fajer Mushtaq, CEO and Co-Founder, Oxyle.
The company was co-founded by Fajer Mushtaq and Silvan Staufert at ETH Zurich, where Mushtaq earned her PhD in Micro- and Nanosystems focused on water remediation – inspired by her experiences with water scarcity in Delhi – while Staufert completed his PhD in Mechanical and Process Engineering. Understanding that water treatment innovations couldn't come soon enough, they developed a technology to degrade Forever Chemicals in minutes. They knew their breakthrough could change the world, but only if it moved from lab to reality.
In just four years, the duo have transformed Oxyle from innovation to implementation. The company has grown to a team of 26, completed over 20 customer projects, and secured prestigious recognition including the Swiss Technology Award, SEIF, and WEF's Uplink Top Innovators. This round brings Oxyle's total funding to $26 million, including additional non-dilutive funding from grants and awards. With revenue-generating customer pilots under its belt and its first commercial installation operational, Oxyle is now securing multiple-year treatment contracts for 2025 and beyond.
The technology's effectiveness has been proven across multiple applications. In groundwater treatment, it reduces PFAS concentrations from 8,700 ng/l to below 14 ng/l. For soil wash water, it achieves 99.8% removal of 11 different PFAS species. It eliminated 98% of short-chain PFAS and reduced trifluoracetic acid (TFA) concentrations by 96% in trials with an industrial customer. Most significantly, in November 2024, Oxyle deployed its first full-scale system in Switzerland, treating 10 cubic meters of contaminated groundwater per hour at less than 1 kWh/m³.
"We are proud to lead the investment in Oxyle, whose pioneering technology addresses the massive global challenge of PFAS pollution," says Thomas Nivard, Partner at 360 Capital. "Unlike traditional methods that merely contain these harmful chemicals, Oxyle's solution destroys them permanently, setting a new standard for tackling this urgent environmental crisis. This is a game changer. The team’s exceptional commercial and technical momentum has laid a strong foundation for establishing a true technology leader in the coming years.”
The timing for Oxyle's solution is critical. Rising waves of PFAS-related lawsuits and multi-billion-dollar settlements in the U.S. are pushing companies to adopt preventative solutions. Stricter regulations in both the EU and US are increasing demand for advanced treatment technologies that can ensure compliance and minimise liability. New data from the Forever Lobbying Project shows the cost of inaction is staggering – cleaning up Europe's soil and water from PFAS contamination could cost €100 billion per year, totalling €2 trillion over the next 20 years.
Looking ahead, Oxyle aims to treat 100 million cubic meters of contaminated water in the next five years. The company plans to expand its solution across industries, from chemical and consumer goods manufacturing to semiconductor production and municipal water treatment – ultimately restoring and protecting our waters from Forever Chemicals, down to the very last drop.
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