Airbuild

Airbuild is a science and energy startup working on river bioremediation and sustainable resource recovery. Its core system places self-powered, algae-based bioreactors (referred to as BioPods) near polluted water bodies, where microalgae strip nutrients and contaminants from the water while capturing CO2 and releasing oxygen. Treated water is returned to its source. The company states its systems remove nitrogen, phosphates, heavy metals, PFAS and E. coli, and that a cooling water bed placed beneath solar panels raises photovoltaic output.

Beyond water treatment, Airbuild converts harvested algae and local organic waste into biochar, which is used as fertilizer and sold into carbon credit initiatives. The company frames its target opportunity around wastewater lagoons, citing 7,500 such lagoons in the United States, and positions clean water and food security as outputs of the same nutrient-recovery system. As of 2025 it was piloting in multiple locations and developing its first microalgae facility in Green River, Utah."]

Founding story

Co-founder John Bucur conceived the idea for Airbuild while studying business sustainability at Arizona State University. Co-founder David Gory grew up in Nigeria without reliable access to clean water or electricity and immigrated to the United States at sixteen to study mechanical engineering. The two were introduced through a mutual friend and aligned around carbon capture, then recruited Dr. Richard Mariita as co-founder and Chief Scientific Officer / Chief Scientific Advisor; Mariita grew up in Kenya and lost his mother and sister to waterborne diseases, which shaped his work in microbiology and clean water.

Business model

Airbuild deploys its bioreactor systems through partnerships with local governments and canal companies, extracting excess nutrients from waterways, and converts the harvested algae and local organic waste into biochar that is used as fertilizer and sold for carbon credit initiatives.

Revenue is associated with biochar sold as fertilizer and with carbon credit initiatives tied to the carbon captured and sequestered by its deployments.

Traction

The Green River, Utah project involves a planned $9.5 million capital investment over three years and 15 new jobs. The company expects each pod to remove 500 tons of CO2 and filter 2 million gallons of water annually. Forbes reported the cofounders had raised $1 million to date as of January 2026, and the cofounders appeared on the Forbes 30 Under 30 Energy & Green Tech 2026 list.

Latest developments

In May 2025 Airbuild announced plans to develop its first microalgae facility on property leased from the City of Green River, Utah, under the name Project Photosynthesis. As of September 2025 the company reported piloting in multiple locations and seeking to scale. A Forbes profile last updated in January 2026 described a demonstration facility under construction in Green River and $1 million raised to date.