21. UNDO: the startup targeting one billion tonnes of CO₂ removal

Founder: Jim Mann
Year founded: 2022
Website: un-do.com

Various greenwashing scandals have made today’s consumers more wary of carbon offsetting. Projects can be low-quality. Many don’t go further than planting trees, a method which could take centuries to provide actual environmental impact.

One provider that is going further is UNDO. Also in last year’s Index, the firm has emerged as one of the most credible Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR) providers. Spotting that many CDRs are — for all intents and purposes — barking up the wrong tree, founder Jim Mann instead threw his weight behind Enhanced Rock Weathering (ERW).

ERW works by crushing silicate rock and spreading it on soil. The rock naturally begins to weather, removing atmospheric CO2 while also enriching the soil with essential nutrients.

With few competitors in the space, UNDO has largely been creating its own playbook. Its biggest challenge was educating the market on a little-known, science-backed product. 

To do so, Mann has leaned heavily into the data. That included building out UNDO’s unique data platform, NEWTON, which collects real-time data on every step of the process. And, because ERW begins removing CO2 straight away, that data starts almost instantly.

Beyond vague promises of ‘green spaces’, this allows customers to see the impact of their investment down to a single tonne of CO2. Unlike tree planting, CO2 is also permanently locked away for thousands of years. Once the carbon is removed, it cannot be reversed.

UNDO’s mission is long-term, but it hit some key milestones in 2024. Microsoft renewed its contract, which will see UNDO spread 60,000 tonnes of silicate rock across the UK and Canada. The tech giant also agreed to fund the startups’ Measurement, Reporting, and Verification (MRV) enhancement trials, to further develop NEWTON.

UNDO’s short-term aim is to capture more than one million tons of atmospheric CO2. But it also wants to work with other nature-based CDR suppliers to strengthen the industry’s reputation. In 2023, it was one of the founding signatories of the Reykjavik Protocol, a set of principles that governs how suppliers should responsibly bring their solutions to markets. 

“At UNDO, we see carbon removal as a team sport”, says Mann. That may be true. But In the race against time for high quality CDR projects, UNDO is certainly the team leader.