RarEarth, a start-up with offices in Milan and Ancona, has announced that it has secured a grant of 2.5 million euros and the opportunity to negotiate an equity investment of up to six million euros to further develop its business project, which focuses on the recovery and recycling of rare earths from end-of-life motors and electronic equipment. The grant is being provided by the European Innovation Council (EIC), which selected RarEarth as the only Italian start-up worthy of funding amongst the 38 start-ups and small and medium-sized enterprises based in 16 countries that were shortlisted in June 2026 to access funding totalling 90 million euros in grants and over 200 million in coverage for potential follow-on investments.
Founded in 2023 and joining the I3P incubator in 2024, RarEarth transforms electronic waste into high-performance magnets, produced entirely in Europe, thanks to a revolutionary recycling technology. Its patented process ensures that the quality of the recycled magnets is on a par with that of the originals, whilst drastically reducing environmental impact, supporting the clean energy transition and strengthening the resilience of the supply chain.
The company has calculated that by 2040, the global market for neodymium-iron-boron (NdFeB) magnets could reach a total value of 68 billion dollars, driven by growing global demand for electric vehicles, renewable energy and high-performance electronics: as the industry increasingly shifts towards sustainable and efficient solutions, remanufactured magnets are becoming a key element in green innovation and the circular manufacturing of the future.
The European Innovation Council has recognised the value of RarEarth’s technology project not only through a grant of 2.5 million euros – which the start-up will use to build its first production plant – but also by awarding it the ‘STEP Seal’, a quality mark reserved for initiatives that contribute to achieving the objectives of the Strategic Technologies for Europe Platform (STEP) and which, as a result, will be able to gain easier access to further European funding for growth.
This is not the first time RarEarth has gained public visibility, both nationally and internationally. In recent years, the company was awarded a grant of 100,000 euros at the MOST Mobility Competition 2024 and received a special mention ‘ENI Joule for Entrepreneurship’ at the ENI Awards 2024 in the presence of the President of the Republic, Sergio Mattarella, and in July 2025 it successfully completed an initial capital raise of €2.6 million led by Primo Capital and Mito Tech Ventures, with participation from Corbites Fund, Vento Ventures and Coreangels Climate.
“We are proud to have been included by the EIC amongst the 38 European companies that have distinguished themselves most for the level of innovation and strategic value of their products, services or business models,” says Enrico Pizzi, co-founder and CEO of RarEarth, in a statement (pictured here with the team). “For us, the STEP Seal is more than just an award: it is international recognition of what we are achieving – namely, a process to reduce Europe’s dependence on rare-earth imports and a concrete, locally produced alternative to magnets made from new mining operations. “We are already growing very rapidly, thanks in part to the constant support of I3P, and the backing from the EIC will give us even greater momentum, visibility, access to new investment and opportunities to forge partnerships across Europe, as we move towards the stage of industrial-scale production.”
Giuseppe Scellato, chairman of I3P, adds: “We offer our warmest congratulations to the RarEarth team on this excellent result, which is the fruit of the hard work carried out since the start-up’s inception and the courage it has shown in pursuing an ambitious strategic vision based on innovative technology.” “Securing not only the financial resources from the EIC Accelerator to continue on the path of entrepreneurial growth, but also the prestigious European STEP Seal – which will open the door to further opportunities – serves as confirmation of the project’s value at an international level. As an incubator, we will continue to support RarEarth’s development and guide the company through its next steps towards establishing itself in the market”,
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