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The basics:

• Still Bright to open global headquarters at NEST
• Startup will occupy 15K square feet for R&D, pilot manufacturing
• Patented RACER process can recover up to 99% of copper from sulfide ore
• Move supports growth following a $18.7M seed funding round

Clean-tech startup Still Bright is establishing its global headquarters at the Northeast Science and Technology (NEST) Center in Kenilworth. The recent announcement marks the next phase of its growth as the company prepares to scale its copper extraction technology toward pilot manufacturing.

Still Bright will occupy 15,000 square feet of laboratory space at 15 NEST. There, it will house research and development, technical testing, process advancement, corporate operations and pilot-scale manufacturing related to its patented copper extraction process. According to the company, the move follows an $18.7 million seed funding round completed in 2025 and comes as it advances plans for a demonstration unit capable of producing approximately 500 metric tons of copper annually.

Founded in 2022, Still Bright’s patented RACER process can recover up to 99% of copper from sulfide ore at ambient temperature and pressure, according to the company. The innovation offers a lower-cost alternative to conventional smelting while eliminating harmful waste.

“We’re entering a decisive period for Still Bright and for the copper industry,” said Randy Allen, the company’s co-founder and CEO. “We’ve spent the past few years proving that modern electrochemistry can produce copper with better economics than the status quo. The geological copper is there and the demand is undeniable. What’s been missing is a way to produce copper that communities can actually welcome.”

Allen said the RACER process avoids toxic pollutants while converting typical waste streams into valuable co-products.

“Our move to NEST lets us advance our pilot and prepare for global on-site demonstrations, right here in New Jersey,” he said.

Staying in the NEST

NEST officials said the relocation reflects the campus’s mission of helping emerging technology companies grow without leaving the state.

“Still Bright’s move to NEST is exactly the type of growth story this campus was built to support,” said Matt Flath, senior vice president of asset management at Onyx Equities, a joint owner of the campus. “They are graduating from New Jersey’s startup ecosystem into a headquarters and pilot-scale manufacturing environment that allows them to keep advancing their technology here in the state. That is a powerful example of how NEST can help retain and scale innovative companies in New Jersey.”

Still Bright expects to begin occupying the new facility within 60 days.

The announcement marks another milestone for a company first profiled by NJBIZ during a 2023 tour of HAX’s Newark accelerator. At the time, the program was still taking shape and operating out of temporary space before opening its permanent headquarters in 2024.