Gross-Wen Technologies
Gross-Wen Technologies commercializes the patented Revolving Algal Biofilm (RAB) System, an algae-based platform that removes nitrogen and phosphorus from wastewater while producing sellable algae byproduct, serving municipal utilities, industrial food and beverage facilities, and agricultural operators.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2014
- HeadquartersSlater, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Gross-Wen Technologies does
Gross-Wen Technologies is a biotechnology company that has commercialized the patented Revolving Algal Biofilm (RAB) System, an algae-based wastewater treatment platform that uses vertically oriented conveyor belts on which algae grows and simultaneously consumes nitrogen and phosphorus from wastewater using sunlight and atmospheric carbon dioxide. Founded in 2014 by Dr. Martin Gross and Dr. Zhiyou Wen at Iowa State University and headquartered in Slater, Iowa, the company has expanded the RAB platform from a single municipal application into five configured modes covering industrial pre-treatment, secondary treatment with nutrient removal, fixed-film tertiary polishing, sidestream treatment of anaerobic digestate, and agricultural anaerobic digestor treatment. The harvested nutrient-rich algae is pelletized and sold as fertilizer, creating a byproduct revenue stream alongside the core hardware business.
The company generates revenue through custom-engineered RAB system sales and installation, ongoing operational services, licensing of its patented technology, and algae byproduct sales. Its go-to-market combines direct enterprise field sales to municipal wastewater treatment plants and industrial food and beverage facilities with a June 2026 commercial partnership with Xylem that extends reach into Xylem's industrial customer base. Customers span municipal utilities in Iowa, Illinois, Nebraska, and Washington, industrial food and beverage operators, agricultural operations, and a pilot site in Singapore, with deployment scale ranging from pilots and demos to a small number of full-scale sites.
Gross-Wen Technologies is a private, venture-backed company with approximately $14.1 million of disclosed funding raised across multiple rounds since 2018, including a $6.5 million Series A in August 2021 led by ISA Ventures and Iowa Farm Bureau's Rural Vitality Fund, a $2 million US Department of Energy award, and more recent state and private financings. Its strategic priorities, evidenced by the 2025 VP of Business Development hire, the 2024 climate tech patent for TDS removal, and the Xylem partnership, point toward scaling the industrial food and beverage vertical and expanding geographically beyond its Midwest base.
Gross-Wen Technologies firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Gross-Wen Technologies
- Legal name
- Gross-Wen Technologies, Inc.
- Website
- https://algae.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2014
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Gross-Wen Technologies commercializes the patented Revolving Algal Biofilm (RAB) System, an algae-based platform that removes nitrogen and phosphorus from wastewater while producing sellable algae byproduct, serving municipal utilities, industrial food and beverage facilities, and agricultural operators.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Gross-Wen Technologies industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Wastewater Treatment Systems
- NAICS
- Sewage Treatment Facilities (22132)
- SIC
- Sanitary Services (4950)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Industrial Wastewater & Effluent Treatment Services (BPALAHAD)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Biological CO₂ Utilization (algae/biotech conversion to fuels, chemicals, proteins) (EUABAIAJ)
Keywords
Where Gross-Wen Technologies is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Slater
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Gross-Wen Technologies business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Wastewater Treatment Systems: GWT sells and deploys its RAB wastewater treatment systems to municipal and industrial clients. Revenue comes from system sales, installation, and ongoing operational services. The company recovers nutrients from wastewater and sells the resulting algae biomass as a by-product, creating an additional revenue stream.
- Algae Byproduct Sales: The nutrient-rich algae produced through the RAB process is harvested and pelletized. These algae pellets are sold for various applications including slow-releasing algal-based fertilizer, creating recurring revenue from what was previously waste.
- Licensing and Technology Deployment: GWT licenses its patented RAB technology and provides associated services for wastewater treatment, generating revenue through technology deployment partnerships like the Xylem commercial partnership.
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels4 records
Gross-Wen Technologies product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Gross-Wen Technologies designs, manufactures, and deploys the patented Revolving Algal Biofilm (RAB™) System, an algae-based wastewater treatment platform. The system uses vertically oriented conveyor belts on which algae grows and consumes nitrogen and phosphorus from wastewater while using sunlight and atmospheric CO2. The nutrient-rich algae biomass is harvested and pelletized into sellable slow-release fertilizer. The RAB platform is offered in configurations for industrial food and beverage pre-treatment, municipal secondary/tertiary treatment, sidestream treatment of anaerobic digestate, and agricultural digestate treatment.
Product overview
Gross-Wen Technologies offers a single unified product: the Revolving Algal Biofilm (RAB™) System, a patented algae-based wastewater treatment technology. The system uses vertically oriented conveyor belts where algae grows and consumes nitrogen and phosphorus from wastewater while using sunlight and CO2. The nutrient-rich algae is harvested and pelletized into sellable products, primarily fertilizer. The RAB System is offered as a configurable platform with five distinct application modes: Industrial Pre-Treatment (for food and beverage facilities), Secondary Treatment with Nutrient Removal (for municipal lagoons), Fixed-Film Tertiary Treatment (for polishing effluent), Sidestream Treatment (for anaerobic digestate effluent), and Agricultural Anaerobic Digestor Treatment (for livestock facility waste). All configurations leverage the same core RAB technology with application-specific positioning and process flow adjustments.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Revolving Algal Biofilm (RAB™) System Patented algae-based wastewater treatment technology for municipal and industrial customers. Uses vertically oriented conveyor belts on which algae grows and consumes nitrogen and phosphorus from wastewater using sunlight and atmospheric CO2. The harvested nutrient-rich algae is pelletized into sellable slow-release fertilizer. The system is configured for industrial food and beverage pre-treatment, municipal secondary treatment with nutrient removal, fixed-film tertiary polishing, sidestream treatment of anaerobic digestate, and agricultural digestate treatment.
Quantifiable outcome
- 2 tons of carbon captured from atmosphere for every ton of algae produced
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Gross-Wen Technologies
Customer profileNamed customers15 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Gross-Wen Technologies technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature2 records
Gross-Wen Technologies partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- XylemcoreCommercial partnership to deploy integrated wastewater treatment solutions for industrial facilities, combining Xylem's anaerobic treatment platform with GWT's patented RAB nutrient removal technology. Builds on successful independent deployment at Pasco, Washington industrial facility. Expected to accelerate GWT's expansion into industrial wastewater sector while providing integrated compliance solutions.
- National Laboratory of the RockiesminorSelected GWT as one of 52 energy startups to pitch at the 2026 Industry Growth Forum Pitch Competition, providing exposure to over 200 investors.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights7 records
Gross-Wen Technologies competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Pond Technologies: Canadian company that grows algae on engineered surfaces for industrial emissions and water treatment applications. Closest publicly listed analog to GWT's algae-biofilm, conveyor-style architecture.
- Paques: Dutch biological wastewater treatment specialist using proprietary bacterial and algal processes for industrial and municipal nutrient removal. Competes head-to-head in the nitrogen/phosphorus removal niche GWT targets.
Emerging players
- AlgEn: Slovenian algae biotech startup developing photobioreactor-based systems for wastewater treatment and CO2 utilization. Operates in a similar emerging-niche space with comparable technology scope.
- Organica Water: Hungarian-origin biological wastewater treatment company using hybrid activated sludge and plant-root ecosystems. Targets the same municipal nutrient-removal retrofit niche as GWT.
- Cambrian Innovation: U.S. biotech company applying biological processes (including algae-based and microbial systems) to industrial wastewater treatment and resource recovery. Overlaps with GWT's industrial food/beverage segment.
- Anaergia: Canadian company focused on anaerobic digestion of organic waste and digestate management. Adjacent to GWT's anaerobic-digestate sidestream treatment application and the agricultural RNG value chain.
Broad incumbents
- Xylem: Global water technology major with broad municipal and industrial water/wastewater treatment portfolio. Also a strategic GWT partner (June 2026), making it both incumbent competitor and channel.
- Veolia Environnement: Global environmental services and water/wastewater treatment incumbent. Operates hundreds of municipal WWTPs and competes for nutrient-removal capex globally.
- Suez Water Technologies & Solutions: Major water and wastewater treatment operator and technology provider with deep municipal and industrial relationships in North America and Europe.
- Aquatech International: Global industrial water and wastewater treatment specialist serving food/beverage, energy, and mining clients. Competes for industrial pretreatment and water-reuse mandates.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks7 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Gross-Wen Technologies social profiles
Digital presenceGross-Wen Technologies financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Gross-Wen Technologies leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles6 records
Gross-Wen Technologies funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds6 records
Investors10 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Gross-Wen Technologies M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Gross-Wen Technologies
What does Gross-Wen Technologies do?
Gross-Wen Technologies designs, manufactures, and deploys the patented Revolving Algal Biofilm (RAB™) System, an algae-based wastewater treatment platform. The system uses vertically oriented conveyor belts on which algae grows and consumes nitrogen and phosphorus from wastewater while using sunlight and atmospheric CO2. The nutrient-rich algae biomass is harvested and pelletized into sellable slow-release fertilizer. The RAB platform is offered in configurations for industrial food and beverage pre-treatment, municipal secondary/tertiary treatment, sidestream treatment of anaerobic digestate, and agricultural digestate treatment.
Is Gross-Wen Technologies a public or private company?
Gross-Wen Technologies is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Gross-Wen Technologies founded?
Gross-Wen Technologies was founded in 2014. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Gross-Wen Technologies based?
Gross-Wen Technologies is headquartered in Slater, United States, in the North America region.
How does Gross-Wen Technologies make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Wastewater Treatment Systems are the primary driver. The others are algae Byproduct Sales and licensing and Technology Deployment.
Who are Gross-Wen Technologies's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Pond Technologies and Paques. Emerging players are AlgEn, Organica Water, Cambrian Innovation and Anaergia. Broad incumbents are Xylem, Veolia Environnement, Suez Water Technologies & Solutions and Aquatech International.
Does Gross-Wen Technologies have an API?
No public API is recorded for Gross-Wen Technologies.
What industry is Gross-Wen Technologies in?
Gross-Wen Technologies's product category is Wastewater Treatment Systems. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPALAHAD, Industrial Wastewater & Effluent Treatment Services, with a secondary code of EUABAIAJ, Biological CO₂ Utilization (algae/biotech conversion to fuels, chemicals, proteins). Its NAICS code is 22132 and its SIC code is 4950.