The DePoly Story: A Swiss Cleantech Startup Turning Waste Into Worth, Tackling The Plastic Waste Problem

For decades, traditional recycling methods have fallen short, especially when it comes to the most common and useful type of plastic: PET. This includes the clear plastic in bottles, the fibers in clothes, and the packaging we use every day.

Mechanical recycling—today’s standard—can only handle clean, sorted plastics. Everything else, from mixed textiles to colored packaging, gets discarded. Worse still, the recycled plastic is often of lower quality than the original, limiting its reuse.

This problem inspired a group of Swiss scientists to take a radical approach: start at the molecular level and work backward.

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Visionary Behind The Startup: DePoly

At the heart of this vision is Dr. Samantha Anderson, a Canadian scientist who earned her PhD from EPFL in Switzerland. To her, plastic wasn’t the villain everyone painted it to be. Instead, she saw it as a misunderstood resource — one that we’ve misused, mismanaged, and thrown away too easily.

Together with her co-founders — Dr. Bardia Valizadeh and Dr. Christopher Ireland — she asked a game-changing question:

What if we could break plastic down into its original ingredients, and make it new again — without harming the planet?

This was not just curiosity. It was a mission. And it led them into years of research, trial and error, and long nights in the lab. But through that persistence, they created something extraordinary.

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A Breakthrough in Chemical Recycling

The result of their efforts is DePoly, a startup with a revolutionary chemical process that does what others can’t. Unlike conventional recycling, DePoly’s technology can take any kind of PET plastic — even if it’s dirty, colored, or blended with textiles — and break it down into its original building blocks: Pure Terephthalic Acid (PTA) and Ethylene Glycol (EG).

These are the same ingredients used to make brand-new PET plastic. So, instead of downcycling plastic into something cheaper and weaker, DePoly restores it to its full quality — over and over again.

Even more impressive is how they do it. Their process doesn't require any toxic chemicals, high heat, or energy-intensive cleaning. It works at room temperature and is gentle on the environment yet strong enough to handle the most challenging plastic waste. This makes it not only eco-friendly but also scalable and practical for industrial use.

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The Challenges of Starting Small

No startup journey is smooth — especially one based on deep science. DePoly faced its share of skepticism. Investors were hesitant. Scaling lab results to an industrial level seemed risky. But the team didn't give up. Their passion for the planet and belief in their solution kept them going.

Gradually, things began to change. Scientists praised their breakthrough. Investors began to see the promise. Industry players started paying attention. What started as an idea in a lab began to grow — not just as a technology but as a movement.

A Vision of a Circular Future

For DePoly, recycling isn't just a process—it's a new philosophy. Their ultimate dream is to redefine how we use plastic altogether. Imagine a world where plastic is no longer seen as waste but as a reusable, renewable material, where PET can be recycled an unlimited number of times without losing quality, and where clothing, packaging, and even industrial plastics can be part of a clean, circular economy.

The technology doesn't require companies to start from scratch. DePoly's process can be plugged directly into existing factory systems, making it cost-effective and easy to adopt.

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The Road Ahead

Born in a country known for its environmental awareness, DePoly is now preparing to take its global solution. They are scaling up production, forming partnerships with international brands, and opening doors to a more sustainable future.

Sure, challenges still remain — from policy barriers to logistical hurdles — but DePoly is ready. They have science, purpose, and the determination to make real change.

DePoly didn't start with a trendy product or marketing campaign. It began with a question, a sense of responsibility, and a belief in science. And today, it stands as a symbol of what’s possible when innovation meets empathy.

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