Liquid X Printed Metals Completes Series A Financing Round to Develop Metallic Conductive Ink Technology

Liquid X Printed Metals, Inc., a Carnegie Mellon University start-up company, has announced the closing of a Series A financing round, and that it has named former Bayer Corporation president and CEO Greg Babe to serve as CEO of Liquid X. The financing round was led by Newlin Investment Company with additional funding from other investors. Participating in the investment round is Innovation Works (IW), a leading investor in seed- and early-stage technology companies.

Liquid X was founded in 2010 by Richard McCullough, a nationally recognized leader in sciences, research and entrepreneurship at Carnegie Mellon University, along with Bill Newlin, the company’s first outside investor, and John A. Belot, Ph.D., who is the scientific officer of the company and a visiting associate professor at Carnegie Mellon University.

The Series A financing will be used to further develop Liquid X’s metallic conductive ink technology that allows electronics and other manufacturers to print metal traces and films onto a broad range of substrates for applications that range from medical devices and consumer electronics components, to energy applications and printed circuit boards. Liquid X’s innovative approach will enable manufacturers to tap the potential of metallic conductive ink technology more cost effectively than before.

“We formed Liquid X to improve the ability to design, synthesize, formulate and implement chemical inks that form conductive metal traces for the promising printed electronics market,” said McCullough, now vice provost for research at Harvard University.

“Because this solution can print significantly thinner films than any other solution on the market, using metals such as gold and silver, the cost savings are substantial and the end-use advantages are considerable. This round of funding will provide us with the financial resources to accelerate the development process and the process of bringing Liquid X to market,” he added.

“Today and at an increasing rate in the future, electronics products across all industries, from consumer to medical device and industrial sectors, will require thinner, more powerful and robust, and more adaptable technologies for the full range of applications,” said Babe. “Liquid X will enable product designers and manufacturers to more cost-effectively maximize the capabilities of metallic conductive technology.”

Babe retired from Bayer Corporation in 2012, where he was president and CEO and senior Bayer representative for the U.S. and Canada responsible for the North American activities of the worldwide Bayer Group, an international health care, nutrition and innovative materials group based in Leverkusen, Germany. He was also president and CEO of Bayer MaterialScience LLC. Since retiring from Bayer, Babe was CEO of the Pittsburgh-based Orbital Engineering.

“The potential for Liquid X is vast,” said Newlin, chairman of Newlin Investment Company. “Rick’s and John’s vision when developing Liquid X was unprecedented. We knew that to realize this vision, Liquid X required someone who has been on the world stage. Greg Babe was the right fit. We are confident that Greg will work to give Liquid X every opportunity to operate and compete on a global scale.”

Babe first joined Bayer in 1976 in the Polyurethanes Group, and over the years has held several management positions of increasing responsibility in the U.S. and Germany.

He has previously served on the American Chemistry Council’s (ACC) Executive Committee and Board of Directors, and as the executive chair of the ACC’s Responsible Care Board Committee.