Material World is a weekly roundup of innovations and ideas that are reshaping the materials sector. It covers the latest developments in how fashion is designed, engineered, and scaled—from emerging biomaterials and next-generation leathers to engineered fibers and sustainable alternatives.

Finnish materials firm Spinnova is looking to raise at least $15 million through a U.S. initial public offering (IPO) as it works to commercialize its wood- and waste-based fiber technology.

The Jyväskylä-based company confidentially submitted a draft Form F-1 registration statement to the Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) for the proposed sale. If completed, the offering would be accompanied by a dual listing on the Nasdaq Capital Market. Spinnova’s existing shares would continue trading on Finland’s Nasdaq First North Growth Market under the ticker SPINN.

The proposal remains preliminary. Spinnova has not determined the number or price of the securities it would offer, and its board has yet to make a final decision. The transaction would also require SEC review, shareholder approval and other company authorizations, while its timing will depend on market conditions.

Spinnova said it would use the net proceeds to ramp up its Eteläportti demonstration facility, advance the commercialization of its technology and support general corporate purposes. The facility came under Spinnova’s full ownership last year after Brazilian pulp producer Suzano withdrew from further investments in its Woodspin joint venture. Production was subsequently halted while Spinnova evaluated options for restarting operations.

The contemplated raise follows a financially difficult year for the company. Spinnova generated 344,000 euros ($396,589) in revenue in 2025 and posted an operating loss of 41.3 million euros ($47.6 million), including an impairment of 18.4 million euros ($21.2 million) tied to Woodspin. It is scheduled to report its results for the first half of 2026 on Aug. 31.

Spinnova has traded in Finland since 2021, when its initial public offering raised approximately 115 million euros ($132.6 million).

Metsä Spring

Metsä Spring, the venture capital arm of Finnish forest industry firm Metsä Group, has scrapped plans to build a Kuura textile fiber mill in Kemi, Finland, citing global overcapacity and limited demand for higher-priced, responsibly produced man-made cellulosic fibers.

Developed by the Finnish forestry group’s innovation arm, Metsä Spring, Kuura is made from paper-grade softwood pulp sourced from Finnish forests. The company has positioned the fiber as an alternative to cotton, petroleum-based synthetics and conventional man-made cellulosics. A demonstration plant at Metsä’s Äänekoski bioproduct mill has been producing the material while the company evaluated its prospects at commercial scale.

Metsä began studying a larger Kuura mill in 2024, initially considering locations in Äänekoski and Kemi. It now says significant new man-made cellulosic fiber capacity, particularly in Asia, has emerged in a short period and weakened the competitiveness of materials carrying higher production and sustainability costs.

“Currently, too few customers are willing to pay a premium for responsibly produced materials,” the company said.

Metsä determined that the project no longer has the conditions required to proceed in its current form. It did not outline another route to commercializing Kuura but said it is exploring ways to use the textile-fiber expertise developed through the project.

The cancellation was announced alongside a separate 25-million-euro investment in Muoto, Metsä’s molded fiber packaging business. The company plans to open a production line in Äänekoski in 2028 with annual capacity exceeding 100 million products. Metsä said that demand for plastic alternatives and the European Union’s Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation have created a clearer commercial opportunity for the packaging material.

Metsä did not disclose how much it has invested in Kuura to date or what will happen to the existing demonstration plant.

Biomaterials company Ponda has raised more than 1.4 million pounds through an equity crowdfunding campaign to help move its plant-based textile insulation from pilot to commercial scale.

The Bristol, England-based company surpassed its target on Republic Europe, drawing approximately 1.41 million pounds ($1.9 million) from 215 investors. The campaign values Ponda at 7.5 million pounds ($10.1 million) before the investment and offers up to 15.82 percent of the company through Series Seed shares priced at 12.54 pounds ($16.91) apiece.

Ponda produces BioPuff, a lightweight insulation made from Typha, commonly known as bulrush or cattail. The crop is grown through paludiculture, or agriculture on rewetted peatlands, linking production of the down and synthetic-fill alternative with the restoration of degraded wetlands. BioPuff has appeared in projects with brands including Stella McCartney, Sheep Inc., Ahluwalia and Berghaus.

The company plans to use the new capital to expand manufacturing, support its go-to-market efforts, build a large-scale demonstrator and advance research and development. The raise follows a $2.4 million seed round announced in November, which Ponda said would support commercial BioPuff launches for Fall/Winter 2026.

Despite the campaign’s crowd-facing format, most of the capital came from a small number of large commitments. Its six biggest investments, all listed anonymously, represented nearly 90 percent of the amount raised. Management and existing shareholders committed 392,979 pounds ($529,896), or approximately 28 percent of the target, according to the campaign’s key investment information sheet.

The same filing underscores how early Ponda remains in its commercialization journey. The company reported 20,890 pounds in turnover and an EBITDA loss of 790,382 pounds (roughly $1.1 million) in 2025.

Separately, Ponda was awarded a 2.4-million-pound ($3.2 million) project backed by a 1.9 million-pound ($2.6 million) grant through the U.K. Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs’ Farming Innovation Programme. The project will examine whether restored wetlands can supply higher-value biomaterials while reducing emissions and creating additional income for farmers.

The Ellen MacArthur Foundation has joined American Circular Textiles as an Insights Partner, formalizing a relationship focused on advancing circular textile policy and infrastructure in the United States.

American Circular Textiles, or AMCIRC, is a U.S. policy coalition that brings together companies working across retail, resale, repair, recycling, manufacturing and technology. Its current work includes developing a national blueprint for textile extended producer responsibility, advocating for sales and use tax exemptions for circular businesses and tracking the implementation of California’s textile EPR law, Senate Bill 707.

Through the collaboration, the foundation will participate in AMCIRC membership meetings and events, among other activities. The organizations also plan to exchange research, information and policy insights supporting their respective circular-economy initiatives.

“Their research and systems-level thinking on circularity have shaped this field for over a decade,” said Rachel Kibbe, founder and CEO of AMCIRC. “We look forward to finding practical ways to advance shared goals for U.S. textile policy together.”

Founded in 2010, the Ellen MacArthur Foundation is a global charity that promotes the transition from a linear, take-make-waste economy to one designed to eliminate waste, keep products and materials in circulation and regenerate nature. Fashion and textiles are among the sectors it has prioritized for systemic change by 2030.

“We are thrilled to be formally joining AMCIRC as an insights partner,” said Danielle Holly, executive lead North America, Ellen MacArthur Foundation. “Their work to educate companies and key U.S. stakeholders on textile policy—as well as their commitment to progressing the conditions that will enable circularity—are critical to the field.”

The organizations did not announce funding, a specific joint initiative or a timeline for producing new policy recommendations.

The German Institutes of Textile and Fiber Research Denkendorf

Researchers in Germany are developing textile yarns that can repeatedly shorten and lengthen in response to temperature changes, potentially allowing fabrics to alter their shape without motors or other mechanical components.

The German Institutes of Textile and Fiber Research Denkendorf, or DITF, is working with the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Polymer Research on multifilament yarns made from thermoplastic two-way shape-memory polymers. Unlike one-way shape-memory materials, which must be manually reshaped after reacting to a stimulus, two-way polymers can move reversibly between programmed forms.

In this case, the yarns contract when heated and lengthen as they cool. The researchers synthesized spinnable fibers with transition temperatures of approximately 30 and 60 degrees Celsius, then tested variables including spinning temperature, spinneret diameter and take-up speed on laboratory and pilot-scale equipment.

The resulting multifilament yarns demonstrated dimensional stability of more than 99 percent at 60 degrees Celsius, meaning they repeatedly returned to nearly the same length at that temperature. They also achieved a reversible elongation change of 16 percent at a winding speed of 1,500 meters per minute. The researchers said the production speed indicates the material could potentially be manufactured cost-effectively.

Possible applications include textiles that automatically regulate air or light permeability as environmental conditions change. DITF pointed to agricultural shading materials that could respond to the weather without electrically powered motors, though the technology could also have uses in apparel, medical products and architecture.

The project remains at the yarn-development stage. Researchers will next study how the yarns perform when processed into textiles and whether they can be recycled thermomechanically at the end of their useful lives.

Balena

Materials science company Balena is exploring whether its flexible biomaterial could provide stretch and support in intimate apparel while reducing the category’s reliance on elastane, nylon, foams and other synthetic components.

Working with textile designer and researcher Shlomit Ariel of CodedMatter Lab, Balena created a conceptual nursing bra and underwear set that combines cotton fabric with targeted structures made from BioCir Flex. The thermoplastic elastomer is between 50-85 percent bio-based, depending on the formulation, according to a DIN certification based on ASTM testing.

The team printed BioCir Flex into auxetic structures that behave like springs and aid elastic recovery when stretched. The structures were then heat-bonded between two layers of cotton, creating flexible, reinforced sections without additional adhesives or sewing. Ariel said the process produced clean, stable edges that did not fray, making it useful for components such as bra straps.

Nursing bras present a particularly complicated design challenge because they must accommodate changes in the wearer’s body while remaining adjustable and supportive. Conventional versions can contain elastic bands, clasps, clips, foam and multiple synthetic textiles, complicating recycling and other end-of-life options.

Balena says BioCir Flex can be processed through injection molding, extrusion and 3D printing and has a Shore hardness ranging from 70A to 90A. The material is DIN-certified as industrially compostable under ASTM D6400 and European EN 13432 standards. The company also describes it as recyclable.

The nursing set remains a research concept rather than a commercial product. Balena did not release test results for stretch recovery, repeated wear, laundering or long-term durability. Its compostability certification applies to BioCir Flex under industrial conditions, not necessarily to the complete garment or its other components.

The company said the approach could eventually be applied to adaptive clothing, sportswear and other close-to-body products requiring targeted stretch and support.