Mitsui Chemicals Launches $60 Million Corporate Venture Capital Fund ‘321Catalyst™’ to Drive Global Innovation and Strategic Growth
Mitsui Chemicals, a leading global chemical manufacturer headquartered in Japan, has announced the official launch of its second corporate venture capital (CVC) fund, named ‘321Catalyst™’, alongside the formation of a new U.S.-based subsidiary, 321Catalyst Ventures, Inc., which will be responsible for managing the fund. This move marks a significant step forward in the company’s long-term strategy to forge innovation-driven partnerships and accelerate the commercialization of next-generation technologies and sustainable solutions.
The 321Catalyst™ fund represents a continuation—and evolution—of Mitsui Chemicals’ corporate venture journey. It builds on the achievements of the company’s first venture initiative, 321FORCE™, launched in 2022 in collaboration with the Japanese venture capital firm Global Brain Corporation. That first fund laid a solid foundation for identifying and investing in promising startups with the potential to disrupt traditional chemical industry paradigms and to align with Mitsui Chemicals’ strategic direction. Now, with 321Catalyst™, the company is expanding the scope, reach, and ambition of its corporate venture investment activities by establishing an independent fund headquartered in the United States.
321Catalyst™: A Catalyst for Global Innovation Partnerships
321Catalyst™ has been launched with an initial fund size of $60 million and a fund lifespan of 10 years, a substantial commitment reflecting Mitsui Chemicals’ intensified focus on fostering innovation and cultivating external partnerships. Unlike its predecessor, which operated through collaboration with a domestic VC partner, 321Catalyst™ is designed to be a fully independent fund, managed directly by Mitsui Chemicals’ new U.S.-based subsidiary. This independence is expected to offer greater agility, global visibility, and a stronger presence in the world’s most dynamic startup ecosystems, particularly in North America.
The primary mission of 321Catalyst™ is to accelerate the development of global innovation partnerships and to serve as a launchpad for new business lines, products, and technologies that can transform both Mitsui Chemicals and the broader materials industry. By identifying and investing in high-potential startups that complement its strategic roadmap, Mitsui Chemicals aims to move beyond the traditional role of a chemical manufacturer and become a solutions-oriented company that addresses global social and environmental challenges through innovation.
The new fund is strategically aligned with Mitsui Chemicals’ overarching long-term business blueprint, VISION 2030, which lays out the company’s ambition to shift toward business models based on delivering integrated solutions. A central pillar of VISION 2030 is the transformation of Mitsui Chemicals’ business portfolio, with a heightened emphasis on sustainability, digitalization, and cross-sector collaboration. The launch of 321Catalyst™ reinforces this trajectory, highlighting the company’s commitment to continuous innovation, international engagement, and entrepreneurial co-creation.
Establishing a U.S. Foothold: 321Catalyst Ventures, Inc.
To effectively operate and manage the fund, Mitsui Chemicals has established a new subsidiary, 321Catalyst Ventures, Inc., in the United States. The choice of location underscores the company’s recognition of the critical importance of the U.S. market and its vibrant innovation landscape. Silicon Valley, Boston, Austin, and other emerging tech hubs are fertile grounds for identifying startups in sectors such as sustainable materials, life sciences, digital chemistry, and industrial decarbonization.
The presence of 321Catalyst Ventures in the U.S. allows Mitsui Chemicals to engage more closely with startup founders, investors, and technology incubators, offering greater proximity to groundbreaking innovation. This move also positions the company to build more meaningful and agile relationships with U.S.-based portfolio companies—relationships that extend beyond financial investment to include technical collaboration, go-to-market strategy support, joint R&D initiatives, and access to Mitsui Chemicals’ global business infrastructure.
Through this structure, Mitsui Chemicals is not just investing capital but also serving as a strategic partner and enabler for startups that can benefit from the expertise, global footprint, and industrial legacy of a Fortune Global 500 firm. In turn, Mitsui Chemicals gains early access to disruptive technologies, market insights, and innovation capabilities that may otherwise be difficult to achieve through traditional R&D models alone.
Strategic Investment Themes: Where 321Catalyst™ Will Focus
While the fund will have a global outlook, its investment strategy will be tightly aligned with Mitsui Chemicals’ strategic focus areas. These include, but are not limited to:
- Sustainable and circular materials: Startups developing biodegradable plastics, bio-based chemicals, waste-to-resource solutions, and circular economy models.
- Digital transformation in manufacturing (Industry 4.0): Companies leveraging artificial intelligence, machine learning, and IoT to optimize manufacturing processes, improve safety, and reduce carbon footprints.
- Healthcare and life sciences: Emerging biotech platforms, drug delivery systems, regenerative medicine, and materials for medical devices.
- Carbon neutrality and green energy: Technologies that enable carbon capture, storage, or utilization (CCUS), hydrogen economy solutions, electrification, and renewable feedstocks.
- AgriTech and food innovation: New materials and processes that enhance food safety, shelf life, and agricultural productivity through sustainable chemistry.
This thematic focus reflects Mitsui Chemicals’ view that the future of the chemical industry lies in cross-disciplinary innovation, where materials science, digital technology, environmental stewardship, and human well-being intersect. 321Catalyst™ is thus positioned to act as a bridge between these emerging fields and Mitsui Chemicals’ own transformation journey.
VISION 2030: The Broader Context
321Catalyst™ is a tactical embodiment of Mitsui Chemicals’ broader VISION 2030 strategic plan. Unveiled as the company’s long-term business framework, VISION 2030 charts a course toward sustainable growth and enhanced corporate value through three core directions:
- Business portfolio transformation: Reducing reliance on legacy petrochemical businesses while expanding into high-value-added domains.
- Solutions-based business models: Shifting from product-centered thinking to integrated service and solution offerings that solve specific customer and societal problems.
- Sustainability and ESG integration: Embedding environmental, social, and governance principles into every aspect of the business.
321Catalyst™ supports all three priorities by enabling Mitsui Chemicals to stay at the forefront of emerging trends, act swiftly on market signals, and co-create value with a new generation of entrepreneurs. By participating in the venture capital ecosystem, the company also gains exposure to lean startup methodologies, agile development cycles, and customer-first innovation—elements that are increasingly vital in today’s rapidly evolving industrial environment.
A Bold Vision for Industrial Innovation
The creation of 321Catalyst™ and 321Catalyst Ventures, Inc. represents more than just a new fund—it symbolizes Mitsui Chemicals’ commitment to becoming an innovation-driven global enterprise that is responsive, proactive, and purpose-led. The venture fund is not an end in itself but a means to an ambitious goal: to redefine how a chemical company can create value in a 21st-century world shaped by climate change, digital disruption, and shifting consumer expectations.
By embracing the logic of “open innovation”, Mitsui Chemicals is acknowledging that the best ideas often lie beyond the walls of its own labs and factories. Through collaboration with visionary founders, nimble startups, and cutting-edge research institutions, the company hopes to harness creativity and entrepreneurship at scale—unlocking new frontiers in materials science, sustainable development, and technological progress.
In a world where innovation cycles are shortening and competitive advantage is increasingly determined by adaptability, 321Catalyst™ gives Mitsui Chemicals the tools and partnerships needed to thrive. It is a declaration that the company is not content to merely adapt to change but intends to be a catalyst for it.
