Breakthrough technology is bringing industrial metals production back to the U.S. – despite tariffs, trade wars, and global supply chain pressures
Boston, MA – 7 May, 2025 – Foundation Alloy, the Boston-based tech startup reinventing American manufacturing through next-generation metals, today announced new backing from Alumni Ventures, America’s Frontier Fund, Engine Ventures, El Cap, Material Impact, and Yamaha Motor Ventures. The investment will accelerate Foundation Alloy’s mission to replace traditional metals with ultra high-performing new materials—and to help restore U.S. manufacturing competitiveness despite rising tariffs and global supply chain pressures.
Spun out of MIT, Foundation Alloy has developed a breakthrough method for producing metals that are stronger, faster to manufacture, and dramatically more energy efficient. These advanced materials outperform global competitors with double the performance, net-zero emissions, 4x faster production, and 10x acceleration of product development.
“Metals are the core input to the entire industrial world, but the way we make them hasn’t changed in at least a century,” said Jake Guglin, CEO and co-founder of Foundation Alloy. “We are fundamentally changing how metals are made, boosting performance, cost efficiency, and speed of production. We’re also proving innovation can revive American industrial competitiveness. When you build what no one else can, the world comes to you.”
Early customers across the U.S., Japan, Germany, Switzerland, and Canada are already seeking to shift sourcing back to the U.S with Foundation. While trade wars, globalization, and supply chain fragility have weakened the American industrial base, Foundation Alloy offers a rare reversal-–proving reshoring is possible not through subsidies or tariffs, but by building superior products.
“The next industrial revolution won’t be led by software alone,” said Steve Weinstein, General Partner, America’s Frontier Fund. “It will be won by companies like Foundation Alloy—those whose innovations restore U.S. leadership in critical technologies. AFF is investing because advanced materials are a strategic pillar of national security and economic competitiveness.”
The metals industry was long overdue for disruption. According to MIT, most metal production processes haven’t changed in over five decades. This stagnation allowed the rest of the world to catch up in a sector the U.S. once dominated. Foundation Alloy is now putting America back out front with the world’s first fully solid-state metals technology, eliminating melting from production and enabling precision atomic engineering. This breakthrough achieves mechanical properties once thought impossible while dramatically improving development speed and manufacturing efficiency, giving customers unprecedented performance. The company is now piloting its proprietary alloys with leading customers in aerospace, defense, energy, and advanced manufacturing—industries demanding a step change in material performance.
"As an early customer of Foundation Alloy, we are seeing the unique value their products are driving for our company first-hand,” said Kei Onishi, CEO of Yamaha Motor Ventures. “Foundation Alloy stands to change the entire industrial landscape with their groundbreaking metals, while revitalizing American manufacturing. We’re proud to back them."
This investment isn’t just about backing a company—it’s about backing a future where America leads by building smarter, faster, and cleaner than ever before.
About Foundation Alloy: Foundation Alloy is redefining the way materials get made—without the old industrial footprint. Its next generation, net-zero metals enable faster, cleaner, more cost-effective manufacturing across the energy, aerospace, automotive, and defense industries. With twice the performance at a fraction of the production time, Foundation Alloy’s breakthrough process transforms raw materials into finished products using a proprietary powder-based method that delivers higher performance and longer-lasting results. The company’s innovation is simultaneously reshoring U.S. metals production while reestablishing American manufacturing leadership. Established in 2022, Foundation Alloy is backed by Material Impact, Engine Ventures, Safar Partners and others committed to the future of advanced manufacturing. For more information, visit: www.foundationalloy.com
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