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Case Study

LanzaTech: Scaling carbon to value

By Anieke Wierenga, Christine Ruf and Murat Tarakci

12 pages

February 2026

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Reference: IMD-2741

The case places students in the role of LanzaTech’s founder, Dr Sean Simpson, in April 2012. The company was built on the radical idea of using proprietary microbes to capture and convert carbon-rich waste gases from heavy industry (like steel mills) into fuel-grade ethanol. LanzaTech has just achieved a massive technological breakthrough: proving its proprietary gas-to-ethanol fermentation process works at an industrial demonstration scale with a major Chinese steel mill. Despite this scientific success, the company is struggling to generate revenues. From its earliest days, investors had put the company onto a path that emphasized technology development and securing a portfolio of patents. Dr Simpson’s dilemma is not about whether the technology works, but rather how to build a profitable business model around it. Simpson must re-evaluate the company’s entire commercialization strategy.

Learning Objective

Analyze the benefits and pitfalls of a licensing-based business model versus alternative commercialization strategies (e.g. joint ventures, build-own-operate, equipment supplier).
Evaluate the impact of early-stage decisions (e.g. investor selection, a ‘technology-first’ focus) on a deep-tech company’s long-term commercial options.
Formulate a cohesive commercialization strategy.

Keywords

Entrepreneurship, Sustainability, Innovation, Carbon Capture, Commercialization, Strategy, Scale-up, Clean Technology, Circular Economy, Affordable Energy, Clean Energy, Climate Action, Industry Innovation, Industry Infrastructure

Settings

Pacific Islands, New Zealand
LanzaTech, Energy, Biofuels, Services, Environmental Services
2005-2012

Type

Field Research

Available Languages

English

Related material

Teaching note

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