James Finlayson
Entrepreneur-in-Residence, Deep Tech
James is an Entrepreneur-in-Residence at Oxford Science Enterprises. He’s here on a mission to find and co-found a new Deep Tech business, applying his expertise in energy, cleantech and industrial technologies. He also advises across the broader OSE portfolio.
Before joining in 2025, James co-founded and scaled Impact Recycling, developing and industrialising a patented separation technology for mixed plastics. As CTO and director, he built three world-first recycling processes in the UK, secured investment from corporates including Nestlé and LG Chem, and licensed the technology internationally to partners in the US and in Finland.
Most recently, James led the development of a novel circular economy product, winning industry recognition including a Royal Academy of Engineering award and Sustainable Medical Product of the Year.
James holds a degree in Chemical Engineering from the University of Edinburgh.
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