Sora Fuel, a Boston, MA based climate technology company, has raised $14.6 million in a funding round led by Spero Ventures and Inspired Capital, alongside Engine Ventures and Wireframe Ventures.
The company plans to use the funds to improve its pilot facility and increase production of sustainable aviation fuel, scaling output from small amounts to larger volumes.
Sora has shown that its system can capture CO₂ directly from the air and turn it into syngas in one step, while also producing hydrogen. It avoids the energy-heavy process used in traditional direct air capture, which is usually very expensive. This makes it a more practical and cost-effective way to produce fuel from air.
The company expects to reach this demonstration goal in about 18 to 24 months, which is very fast compared to most clean fuel startups at a similar stage.
Aviation is responsible for about 3% of global carbon emissions, and air travel demand keeps increasing. Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) is seen as the best way to reduce emissions in this sector, but it is still too expensive to be widely used. The main challenge is that key inputs like carbon sources, green hydrogen, and clean energy are costly, making SAF much more expensive than regular jet fuel.
Read More:Caylent Acquires Pronetx to Deliver AWS Native
Sora Fuel’s technology captures carbon for under $50 per ton, which is about one-tenth the cost of traditional direct air capture methods. It also shows a path to producing sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) for under $5 per gallon. This low cost approach has already attracted interest from major energy companies, airlines, and aircraft manufacturers. With new regulations in the U.S. and Europe pushing demand for SAF, Sora Fuel is well-positioned to grow quickly due to its lower cost and ability to scale.
“Sora Fuel has built something the clean fuels industry has been searching for: a technology that can actually reach unsubsidized cost parity with fossil fuels,” said Marc Tarpenning, Venture Partner at Spero Ventures, Sora Fuel board member, and co-founder of Tesla. “The team has demonstrated exceptional scientific rigor and engineering execution. Their approach to direct air capture and fuel synthesis is, to our knowledge, the first that makes an economically viable air-to-fuels pathway genuinely credible. We’re proud to lead this round.”
“Aviation still relies heavily on fossil fuels and the push toward cleaner fuels is only getting stronger,” said Kamran Ali of Inspired Capital. “Sora Fuel stands out because it combines strong scientific innovation with a clear path to real world business success. That’s what turns a research idea into a company that can lead an entire industry.”
“We’ve gone further, faster, and with less capital than anyone in the e-fuels space,” said Gareth Ross, CEO and co-founder of Sora Fuel. “With this funding, we accelerate our path to production-scale manufacturing of our fuel, bringing the aviation industry one enormous step closer to truly affordable, carbon-negative fuel.”
About Sora Fuel
Founded by Gareth Ross, Sora Fuel produces jet fuel using air, water, and renewable energy. Its technology captures CO₂ from the air and converts it into syngas in a more cost efficient way than traditional methods, making carbon capture much cheaper. This enables the production of carbon negative sustainable aviation fuel that could eventually match the price of fossil jet fuel. Based in Boston, Sora Fuel is supported by leading climate and infrastructure investors.
Read More:Livid Raises $10M in Funding
