London, UK-based Solena Materials which is using AI to design plastic-free protein-based fibres for luxury and high-performance fabrics, is taking a decisive step towards commercialisation with the announcement of a major relocation.
Preparing for its first commercial product launch in 2027, the company is moving into a new pilot facility in North Acton – Imperial College London’s latest innovation and advanced manufacturing location, located in the heart of WestTech London. The relocation follows Solena’s £5.1 million seed round in 2025 and marks a critical transition from breakthrough lab research to scalable production.
It further provides Solena with the space and infrastructure needed to advance its computationally designed protein materials and optimise manufacturing processes ahead of industrial-scale technology transfer. With the capacity to produce up to two tons of fibre per year, the facility will enable Solena to service its existing premium athleisure and luxury brand partners while preparing for full commercial roll-out.
Ecosystem
Having grown from a small team in the Imperial Incubator and moved into the I-HUB building at Imperial’s White City Deep Tech Campus – supported by the London BioFoundry – Solena is now entering a purpose-built environment that keeps the company in London at a time when many deep-tech startups are expanding outside the capital.
Remaining in London maintains Solena’s position within both the Imperial innovation ecosystem, keeping close links to world-leading scientific talent and research facilities, and the WestTech London ecosystem. Locating in Old Oak places the company at the nexus of the HS2 Growth Corridor at a pivotal moment of its expansion.
The move also sets the stage for Solena’s next wave of recruitment and job creation, reinforcing Imperial’s position as the number one university globally for innovation-driven enterprise and scientific translation.
“Solena has grown through our innovation ecosystem,” says John Anderson, chief investment officer at Imperial College London. “Its journey is the perfect example of how deep science ventures can scale in WestTech London and how innovation is driving growth, not just for London, but across the UK.”
Solena Materials is led by CEO and co-founder James MacDonald, a pioneering scientist with a PhD in Structural Biology from Birkbeck, University of London. Following postdoctoral research and a Research Fellowship at Imperial – where his work in computational protein design laid the foundation for Solena’s proprietary technology – he now leads a multidisciplinary team operating at the intersection of computational biology, synthetic biology and materials science.
Source: Solena Materials