Two companies formerly cooperating on cutting-edge biotechnology to develop environmentally friendly products of the future are now locked in an old-fashioned legal fight over breach of contract.
Ecovative Designs LLC of Green Island, N.Y., and Bolt Threads of Emeryville, Calif., have filed dueling lawsuits on opposite sides of the continent, with potentially millions of dollars at stake.
Ecovative is a biotechnology company formed in 2007 by two RPI graduates to develop commercial uses for mushroom products. Bolt is a biotechnology company developing environmentally friendly and sustainable materials for the textile industry.
The two agreed in 2018 to partner on a mushroom-based substance called mycelium that Bolt plans to market as Mylo, an alternative to leather.
Since then things have deteriorated. In its complaint, Bolt does not reveal the amount of money at stake; Ecovative says it was $20 million Not small beer then - it’ll be interesting to see how things pan out.
