Pioneering laundry technology from Bristol debuts at Las Vegas tech conference

Bristol-based tech company Matter has previewed its pioneering microplastic filter technology for washing machines for the first time in the United States.

The company is exhibiting at CES 2024 in Las Vegas – one of the world’s largest technology conferences. 

Matter says the technology could help slash microplastic pollution released by domestic laundry appliances into waterways across North America. 

There are now more than 171 trillion pieces of microplastic floating in our waters.  

The pervasive nature and negative impact of these toxic pollutants seeping into our environment – and even finding a way into our own bodies – is a serious concern.

Textiles create 35 percent of the world’s primary microplastic pollution. Today some 60 per cent of textiles are now made from plastic fibres, says the company.

Every time clothes are washed, up to 700,000 plastic fibres are released from washing machines into our rivers and oceans. 

Top-loading washing machines, popular in North America, can emit up to seven times more than this. 

Matter is working across the laundry sector to integrate their patented microplastic filtration technology into domestic and commercial washing machines.

Matter’s Gulp product is a retrofittable washing machine microfibre filter which can be installed alongside all US washing machines.  

Gulp is compatible with any detergent and does not require replacement filters or other parts. The versatility of being able to position Gulp on top of a washing machine and low down beside a machine makes it ideal for the US market.  

The filtered microfibres caught by Gulp, a substance which is like the lint from a tumble dryer, can be returned for recycling.  

Gulp launches in Europe in 2024, with a North American model planned to follow.

In addition, the company is working alongside industry to install microplastic filtration technology inside domestic and commercial washing machines and dryers. 

Last year Matter announced it had raised a $10 million Series A investment.  

The round was led by S2G Ventures, the direct investment team for Builders Vision, and SOUNDwaves, the sustainability-focused investment vehicle backed by Ashton Kutcher and Guy Oseary.  

Additional investment came from Leonardo DiCaprio-backed Consumer ClimateTech fund Regeneration.VC, and Katapult Ocean, which has made a significant follow-on investment, along with a small number of strategic investors. 

Matter made a number of high profile appointments following the Series A with industry experts Martin Allman and Jess Middlemiss joining as Chief Commercial Officer and Chief Technology Officer respectively.   

Matter Founder and CEO Adam Root said: “Our mission is to capture microplastics before they reach the world’s waterways, and in doing so create a circular economy from the captured material.  

“We have a sustainable, scalable piece of technology that empowers people to become part of the solution and make a real difference.  

“At CES Las Vegas we look forward to meeting with industry to work together to tackle the profound problem of microplastic pollution from laundry.”