Elizabeth Blankenship-Singh, the Director of Innovation at Overlay Capital, is at the forefront of the circular economy movement. Overlay Capital, an Atlanta-based alternative investment firm, is focused on backing both early-stage materials innovators and later-stage recycling operations with established infrastructure. Their Waste and Materials Fund is strategically positioned to capitalize on the $4.5 trillion in new global value that the circular economy is projected to unlock by 2030.
One of the key areas that Overlay Capital is targeting is sortation at materials recycling facilities (MRFs), which is a major bottleneck in the recycling process. Elizabeth explains that the lack of domestic sorting capacity has led to the U.S. being the world’s leading exporter of scrap aluminum while also being the number one importer of finished aluminum. To address this issue, Overlay has invested in companies like AMP Robotics, which uses AI-driven systems to sort recyclables efficiently. By improving sortation, recycling rates increase, landfill life extends, and margins improve as higher-purity materials fetch premium prices.
Overlay’s portfolio also includes next-generation materials companies that are focused on creating products that are better, faster, cheaper, and more sustainable than their traditional counterparts. Cruz Foam, for example, converts chitin from shrimp shells into compostable packaging foam, while Simplifyber uses cellulose to create biodegradable soft goods through 3D molding. Terra CO2, on the other hand, is scaling low-carbon cement technology to reduce concrete’s significant share of global CO2 emissions.
These innovative companies are not only using abundant waste-derived feedstocks but are also achieving price parity with traditional materials. By investing in both innovation and implementation across multiple layers of the circular economy, Overlay Capital is paving the way for a more sustainable future. Elizabeth Blankenship-Singh’s leadership and vision are driving the firm’s success in capturing the opportunities presented by the materials transition.
