alqem
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Investors
About
alqem is a Munich-based deep-tech company using AI-driven materials discovery to hunt for rare-earth-free permanent magnets and other next-generation materials. The company was founded in 2026 by Dr. Hanh Nguyen (CEO, formerly of McKinsey, Unilever, and OCI Global), Dr. Tiago Cerqueira (CTO, co-developer of the Alexandria materials database), and Prof. Milan Allan (CSO, Chair of Experimental Physics, Quantum Metrology and Sensing at LMU Munich). alqem’s platform screens hundreds of millions of candidate compounds computationally and synthesises the most promising, targeting permanent magnets — a market currently dominated ~94% by China — as its first application 123.
Funding History
| Date | Round | Amount | Lead | Co-investors |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026-07-06 | Pre-Seed | €8M | UVC Partners, Union Square Ventures | — 123 |
What Investors Say
“alqem is a startup with world-class science translated into a company tackling one of Europe’s most strategic industrial challenges.” — Amanda Birkenholz, Principal, UVC Partners 2
“The alqem team is leveraging their experience with building one of the largest open data sets to now explore innovative materials.” — Albert Wenger, Partner, Union Square Ventures 2
What Founders Say
“For the first time, we have a map of the materials universe. Not just a few known compounds, but hundreds of millions of possibilities we can now systematically explore.” — Dr. Hanh Nguyen, CEO, alqem 2
Sources
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EU-Startups, “Europe’s magnet supply chain push gets €8 million boost from German startup alqem,” July 6, 2026. Accessed July 2026. https://www.eu-startups.com/2026/07/europes-magnet-supply-chain-push-gets-e8-million-boost-from-german-startup-alqem↩↩
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Tech Funding News, “alqem raises €8M from UVC Partners and Union Square Ventures to hunt for rare-earth-free magnets,” July 6, 2026. Accessed July 2026. https://techfundingnews.com/alqem-raises-8m-rare-earth-free-magnets/↩↩↩↩↩
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chemeurope.com, “8 million euros for the materials of tomorrow — Deep tech startup alqem is scaling its AI platform for materials research,” July 2026. Accessed July 2026. https://www.chemeurope.com/en/news/1189143/8-million-euros-for-the-materials-of-tomorrow.html↩↩
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UVC Partners, “alqem raises €8M to scale its AI-driven Materials Discovery engine built on the largest known materials database,” July 2026. Accessed July 2026. https://www.uvcpartners.com/blog/endless-materials-alqem-raises-eu8m-to-scale-its-ai-driven-materials-discovery-engine-built-on-the-largest-known-materials-database↩