Think Beyond Plastic

What Think Beyond Plastic does

Think Beyond Plastic is a US-based 501(c)(3) non-profit public charity (US reg 82-3886116), established in 2008 and headquartered in Menlo Park, California, that operates the Think Beyond Innovation Center — an accelerator ecosystem focused on bio-benign materials, green and sustainable chemistry, innovative product delivery systems, and circular economy solutions targeting plastic pollution across ocean, agriculture, textile, construction, and transportation sectors. The organization does not develop proprietary technology itself; rather, it curates deal flow and supports selected startups through an annual Catalyst Program (adapted from the Lean Launchpad curriculum), annual accelerator cohorts (documented 2018–2024), an annual Investor Forum, and a Mentorship Program, with access to a network of Regional User facilities in the US and Europe for design, testing, characterization, and prototyping.

The business model is structured as a non-profit accelerator: the organization is exempt from federal income tax and is supported by its parent foundation rather than generating commercial product revenue. Think Beyond Plastic monetizes indirectly through donor/grant support and program partnerships, with funding relationships including headline partners such as the Ellen MacArthur Foundation (New Plastics Economy), ISC3 Innovation Hub, DECHEMA, Schmidt Marine Technology, and the Global Entrepreneurship Center, alongside financial-partner speakers from Capricorn Partners, BASF Venture Capital, Safer Made Fund, and the Pew Charitable Trusts. Its customer/member segments are three-sided: sustainable chemistry startups (primary use case), impact investors seeking frontier capital deal flow, and corporate industry partners (in packaging, food services, agriculture, apparel, and textiles) seeking innovation scouting and R&D partnerships.

Operationally the organization remains a small team (1–10 employees) led by CEO and Co-founder Daniella Russo (Harvard MBA; prior executive experience at Frame Technology, Infoseek, Sun Microsystems, and Xerox PARC), with Gregory Baxter serving as Chief Science Officer and Pam Marcus as Senior Director of Consumer Products. Distribution is concentrated in annual events (Investor Forums in Frankfurt, San Francisco, and virtual editions) and cohort-based recruiting cycles; the 2018 Ellen MacArthur Foundation Grand Innovation Challenge recognition for circular materials and design remains a key third-party credibility marker. Strategic footprint is transatlantic, with documented programming in the United States and Germany and explicit operating-geography references to Southeast Asia, Latin America, Northern Europe, and Central Europe for cohort sourcing.

Name

Think Beyond Plastic

Legal name

Think Beyond Plastic Foundation

Website

https://tbpinnovate.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2008

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Think Beyond Plastic is a US-based 501(c)(3) non-profit accelerator that runs an annual Catalyst Program, accelerator cohorts, and an Investor Forum to support startups developing bio-benign materials, sustainable chemistry, and circular-economy solutions for plastic pollution.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Sustainability Accelerator Programs

NAICS

Research and Development in Biotechnology (except Nanobiotechnology) (541714), Other Plastics Product Manufacturing (32619)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

STEM, Digital Literacy & Maker Education Nonprofits (BPAGADAG)

akta.pro secondary industry

Innovation & Design Thinking Programs (EDAMAHAD)

Keywords

• Sustainable chemistry accelerator
• Bio-benign materials innovation
• Circular economy programs
• Plastic pollution solutions
• Green chemistry startups

Headquarters

HQ city

Menlo Park

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Non-profit Foundation Operations: Think Beyond Plastic Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit public charity (US reg 82-3886116), exempt from federal income tax. The organization is supported by Think Beyond Plastic Foundation and operates accelerator programs, investor forums, and innovation challenges to advance the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Think Beyond Plastic operates an innovation accelerator that runs annual accelerator cohorts, a Catalyst Program, and investor forums to develop and showcase startups working in sustainable chemistry, bio-benign materials, green chemistry, and circular economy solutions for plastic pollution. The organization connects selected startups with investors and industry partners, and provides access to Regional User facilities for design, testing, characterization, and prototyping in the US and Europe.

Product overview

Think Beyond Plastic Innovation Center is an accelerator ecosystem that supports startups and innovators developing solutions for the circular economy, sustainable materials, and plastic pollution. The organization does not offer commercial software products or services in the traditional sense; rather, it operates programs including the Catalyst Program (an adapted Lean Launchpad accelerator curriculum), annual Accelerator Cohorts (2018–2023), an annual Investor Forum, and a Mentorship Program. The Innovation Center also provides access to regional user facilities for design, testing, characterization, and prototyping through its network. The ecosystem connects industry partners, investors, and innovators to advance innovations in bio-benign materials, green and sustainable chemistry, and innovative product delivery systems.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Catalyst Program

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• ISC3 Innovation HubcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerInternational Sustainable Chemistry Collaborative Center (ISC3) partners with Think Beyond Plastic for investor forums and innovation challenges in sustainable chemistry. Andreas Förster serves as Director of ISC3 Innovation Hub.
• DECHEMAcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDECHEMA (Society for Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology) hosts ISC3 Innovation Hub and partners on investor forums and sustainable chemistry initiatives in Germany.
• Ellen MacArthur FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerEllen MacArthur Foundation's New Plastics Economy initiative partners on investor forums and innovation challenges. Their Grand Innovation Challenge winners are featured in Think Beyond Plastic accelerator cohorts.
• Global Entrepreneurship CentercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGEC partners with Think Beyond Plastic for the 2022 Catalyst Program, hosted at GEC Headquarters in Meerbusch, Germany.
• Schmidt MarinecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSchmidt Marine Technology serves as venue host for Investor Forums in San Francisco and provides leadership, with Mark Schrope as founder.
• Think Beyond Plastic FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Think Beyond Innovation Center is supported by Think Beyond Plastic Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit public charity (US reg 82-3886116), which is the parent organization.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• New Energy Nexus: New Energy Nexus is a non-profit accelerator network supporting clean energy and climate startups globally, with programs in the US, Southeast Asia, and Africa. It shares TBP's non-profit accelerator model and emerging-markets footprint, and increasingly overlaps on circular materials and plastic-alternative startups.
• Climate-KIC: Climate-KIC is the EU's main climate innovation initiative, running accelerator programs, innovation communities, and investor networks across Europe. It overlaps with TBP's European accelerator and investor forum activities and competes for similar cohort startups and EU-level sustainability funding.
• Greentown Labs: Greentown Labs is the largest climate-tech startup incubator in North America, running accelerator cohorts and providing prototyping lab space for hardware-based cleantech and sustainable materials startups. It directly competes with TBP for sustainable-chemistry cohort companies and corporate sponsors, though with a much larger physical infrastructure and corporate membership model.
• Activate (formerly Cyclotron Road): Activate is a non-profit fellowship supporting early-stage science and engineering entrepreneurs working on climate and deep-tech solutions. It mirrors TBP's mission of accelerating science-based innovators to commercialization and shares the lean cohort/fellowship model, though with a deeper-tech focus than TBP's sustainable chemistry niche.
• SOSV / IndieBio: SOSV operates IndieBio, the world's largest biotech accelerator, which frequently supports sustainable materials, bioplastics, and circular chemistry startups. IndieBio is a key comparable for TBP on the biology-driven sustainable chemistry cohort side and operates a global program that overlaps with TBP's startup sourcing pipeline.
• Elemental Excelerator: Elemental Excelerator is a non-profit climate-tech accelerator based in Honolulu that funds and scales startups addressing climate change, including circular economy and sustainable materials. It shares TBP's non-profit accelerator model, cohort-based programming, and corporate-partner-driven deal flow, making it the most structurally similar peer.

Broad incumbents

• Y Combinator: Y Combinator is the world's largest startup accelerator and has an increasingly active climate-tech and sustainable materials vertical. While its core mandate is much broader than TBP's, it competes for top-tier sustainable chemistry founders and offers significantly more capital and follow-on investor reach.
• Plug and Play Tech Center: Plug and Play is a large global accelerator with dedicated sustainability, packaging, and brand & retail verticals. While its core is broader than TBP's, its sustainability programs (often run with corporate partners like LVMH, Procter & Gamble, Coca-Cola) directly compete for sustainable chemistry and circular packaging cohort startups.
• Techstars Sustainability Accelerator: Techstars runs sustainability-focused accelerator cohorts (often with corporate partners like The Nature Conservancy or Amazon). It is broader than TBP but directly comparable as a structured accelerator with corporate sponsorship, mentorship, and demo-day investor access for sustainable chemistry and circular economy founders.

Emerging players

• Creative Destruction Lab: Creative Destruction Lab runs a science-based accelerator program with streams spanning climate, materials, and biotech. While broader in mandate than TBP, it is comparable in its focus on science-driven founders and structured objective-setting milestones, and increasingly overlaps on sustainable materials cohorts.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/thinkbeyondplastic

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Think Beyond Plastic