Aeramine secures its first order from the quantum computing sector
UK’s critical minerals recycling champion Aeramine secures its first order from the quantum computing sector
Aeramine, a UK startup seeking growth capital from international investors and part of the UK’s knowledge-rich Oxford–Cambridge Supercluster, is rapidly progressing towards higher levels of technological and manufacturing readiness as it secures its first order from the quantum computing sector for its premium 6N copper recycled from copper waste. Quantum computers rely on ultra-low-temperature environments to maintain qubit coherence, with high-purity copper used extensively in cryogenic components, shielding, and conductors to minimise thermal and electrical losses.
Global demand for upcycling solutions is rising quickly. As electric vehicles—another major use—require three to five times more copper than traditional internal combustion engine cars, the demand for copper will soon surpass current mining capacity. The lengthy process of discovering and approving new mines—taking around 20 years—raises further concerns about whether future copper supplies for renewable energy will be sufficient.
Following the American Physical Society (APS) Global Physics Summit from 15–20 March 2026, the world’s largest physics research conference that drew over 14,000 scientific professionals to Denver, Colorado, Aeramine also took part in an Industry Growth Forum from 31 March to 2 April 2026. Hosted by the nearby National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), a leading federal research laboratory, this event focuses on clean technology and climate-tech development. It gathers more than 1,000 entrepreneurs, investors, and experts to promote the market adoption of innovative technologies.
“Our focus is on increasing product output to further validate our recycling technology, which involves developing proprietary equipment to refine secondary-grade copper and rare earth metals more efficiently,” says co-founder Alex Lapis. “The uniqueness of our metallurgy, especially its low energy consumption—a highly topical and widely publicised issue for industry—clearly sets us apart from traditional recycling methods.”
Aeramine is situated at Glenmore Business Park in Bedford, in the East of England, near the Silverstone Technology Cluster and approximately halfway between Birmingham and London, within the Oxford-Cambridge Supercluster, which is renowned for its exceptional productivity and unrivalled concentration of research and scientific talent.
“Our critical minerals recycling technology is attracting significant interest from potential users of high-grade copper,” says co-founder Raymond Lam. “Most countries don’t even recycle their precious metals and must import pure metals at high costs.”
According to UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the United States, Europe (including Germany and the UK), and Japan are among the world’s leading exporters of copper waste. Despite their significant roles in the scrap trade, these countries face a strategic imbalance: they export low-grade copper waste but need to import high-purity refined copper — including ultra-high-purity 6N copper (99.9999% pure) — to support high-tech industries such as semiconductor manufacturing and renewable energy.
Due to this reliance and the risk of supply chain disruptions, these nations have officially designated copper as a critical material. This export-import paradox occurs because these countries often lack sufficient domestic high-end refining capacity to convert their own scrap into the 6N ultra-pure standards required for advanced electronics, leading them to export scrap to hubs like China, the world’s largest importer of copper waste, and re-import refined products.
Having now emerged from stealth mode after developing its prototype equipment, Aeramine continues to integrate complex and proprietary components to demonstrate, with high fidelity, that it can operate a large-scale commercial facility. Supported by the UK government, Aeramine completed a £1 million Innovate UK project called Pure CuRE in 2025, in collaboration with Phoenix Scientific Industries Limited (PSI) and the Manufacturing Technology Centre. The company is actively seeking further grants following the UK government’s DRIVE35 initiative due to the importance of copper for the automotive and transport sectors.
Delivered in partnership with the Department for Business & Trade, Innovate UK, and the Advanced Propulsion Centre, the DRIVE35 programme has evolved from the UK Government’s Advanced Manufacturing Sector Plan, which commits to a zero-emission future, with an unparalleled £4 billion in grant funding available until 2035 for automotive R&D, scaling up, and transformation.
The company’s fundraising efforts aim to support commercialisation and further establish itself and the UK as leaders in critical mineral recycling. It plans to raise its growth capital from business angel investors, family offices, and venture capital funds to achieve £18 million in revenue by 2028. To strengthen its senior management team and operational efficiency, Aeramine expects to shortly announce the appointment of an experienced chair, which is a priority for the company, and continues to seek similarly experienced non-executive directors to support its highly capable founding team and technical advisers.
The three co-founders include systems engineer Aleksey Seplyarsky. They recognise that peak copper demand is driven by sectors such as vehicle electrification and AI data centres. At the same time, supply issues are worsened by declining ore grades and a lengthy mining approval process. Recent surges in copper prices reflect a tight market and supply bottlenecks.
Lapis and Lam have personally invested nearly £500,000 in the company through cash and equipment, demonstrating their strong commitment, supported by the expertise of Seplyarsky. Aeramine has already made significant progress in sustainable copper recycling by integrating machine learning into its proprietary furnace technology, which is likely to be further enhanced by quantum sensing. This vital advancement collects detailed process data to develop AI algorithms that optimise refining procedures, moving towards future autonomous operations.
Copper prices hit a record high of $14,500 per tonne in late January 2026, with market tightness worsened by mine outages such as at the Grasberg mine in Indonesia. It was heavily driven by large-scale buying from Chinese macro funds and speculative trading on the Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE). Benchmark prices are currently nearer to $12,000 per tonne.
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