MIT spinout expands operations with new facility focused on scaling domestic critical-mineral refining technologies.
CAMBRIDGE, Mass.— Found Industries has opened its new headquarters and Found Metals Process Development Center in Cambridge, marking a milestone in the company’s efforts to scale technologies for domestic critical-mineral refining and energy production.
The new facility will serve as the headquarters for the MIT spinout and expand its capacity to move laboratory discoveries into industrial-scale processes. Scientists, engineers and technicians at the center will develop and test systems for recovering critical metals from existing industrial streams and produce qualified materials for U.S. industrial customers.
The opening was marked by a ribbon-cutting ceremony attended by Massachusetts Lieutenant Governor Kim Driscoll, U.S. Department of Energy Associate Deputy Secretary Alex Fitzsimmons, MIT President Emeritus Rafael Reif, MIT Professor Elsa Olivetti, Massachusetts Undersecretary of Economic Development Zenobia Moochhala, and representatives from government, industry and the Greater Boston innovation community.
“The opening of this center marks Found’s transition from scientific breakthrough to industrial scale-up,” said Dr. Peter Godart, founding president and CEO of Found Industries. “Gallium and other critical metals already move through industrial streams in the United States, but we have yet to extract them at scale. This is fundamentally a processing and, more importantly, a technology bottleneck. Our goal is to unlock new domestic production using the infrastructure and resources already in front of us.”
Originally founded as Found Energy, the company grew out of research initiated by Godart at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory and continued during his doctoral studies at MIT. Its original technology uses activated aluminum to generate hydrogen and heat from water.
As the company expanded its energy platform, it broadened its focus to critical minerals through its Found Metals division. The division develops processes to recover materials such as gallium, indium, germanium and antimony from industrial feedstocks, residues and byproducts using technologies designed to operate without foreign-controlled materials or reagents.
Gallium is an initial priority because it is used in advanced semiconductors, radar systems, communications equipment, data centers, space-based solar systems and power electronics, while the United States currently produces virtually none of the primary gallium it consumes.
In May 2026, Found Industries and ARES Strategic Mining Inc. signed a memorandum of understanding to evaluate the recovery of gallium, germanium and other critical materials from feedstocks associated with the Lost Sheep Mine in Utah. The companies are exploring opportunities for feedstock assessment, process integration, pilot projects and potential commercialization.
“Found Industries is a shining example of the technological innovation and growth that Massachusetts is known for,” said Lieutenant Governor Driscoll. “The company’s expansion in Cambridge represents exactly the type of growth we want in the Commonwealth, including advanced manufacturing, energy and critical technologies that can strengthen domestic supply chains, create good jobs and make the United States more competitive.”
The Process Development Center is designed to bridge the gap between laboratory research and commercial deployment by supporting process integration, testing with industrial feedstocks, equipment development, product qualification and preparation for industrial use.
“The United States and allied countries need more than new mines,” said Olivetti. “We need to treat existing industrial waste streams, refining residues, scrap streams and byproducts as strategic mineral resources. Found’s strategy builds critical-minerals capacity around industrial partners that already have the feedstocks, sites, utilities, logistics and operations needed to move quickly.”
The U.S. Department of Energy is supporting the company’s domestic gallium work through its Technology for Recovery and Advanced Critical-material Extraction-Gallium (TRACE-Ga) program, which is advancing Found’s electrochemical process for recovering gallium directly from industrial process streams. The company’s gallium initiatives have also received support from the U.S. Department of Defense, the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center and private investors.
“Found Industries is exactly the kind of company that the country needs today,” said Reif. “It is a science-based innovation company translating research into technology that addresses major national challenges in industrial manufacturing and supply chains. The semiconductor and aluminum industries need the capabilities that Found is developing.”
Fitzsimmons said the company’s progress demonstrates the value of collaboration among government, academia and industry.
“Found Industries is a bipartisan success story and a Department of Energy success story,” he said. “Critical-mineral supply chains are essential to our economic growth, national security and long-term competitiveness. Scaling technologies from the laboratory to the marketplace requires federal, state and private-sector partners working together, and we look forward to continuing our partnership with Found.”
While the Cambridge facility will serve as the company’s headquarters and primary metals process development center, Found Industries said it will continue to maintain a Boston presence for its energy projects while advancing additional energy and critical-material initiatives in the United States and internationally.
