Rooted in the Ocean
Our materials come from regenerative seaweed — a resource that captures carbon and needs no land, freshwater, or fertilizer to grow.
Founder story
From a kitchen lab in Halifax to a global mission
Sheheryar Khan grew up in the United Arab Emirates and found chemical engineering at Heriot-Watt University in Dubai before continuing at Saint Mary's University in Halifax. There, one thing stood out: brilliant research — patents, papers, breakthrough ideas — that never left the lab.
So the lab came home. Materials ordered online, a makeshift setup in a kitchen, and countless failed prototypes later, a seaweed bioplastic emerged that was strong enough to compete. The first pitches lost. Then pitching became a math problem to solve — and by the fifth competition, Alaagi was winning on world stages, from the Enactus World Cup in Bangkok to the Hult Prize in London.
Today that kitchen experiment is a TRL 6-validated material, developed in a dedicated lab at Saint Mary's University and backed by the National Research Council of Canada and the Verschuren Centre.
That's when Alaagi stopped being an idea and became a mission.
The people turning science into impact
Engineers, operators, and researchers across Canada and the UAE — backed by two engineering professors and co-op researchers from around the world.
Momentum the world has noticed
Enactus World Cup
Champion for Canada — Bangkok.
Hult Prize
Top 24 in the world — London.
Nestlé × UNESCO
Top 100 global innovators — Paris showcase.
$227K non-dilutive
Backed by Mitacs, Invest Nova Scotia, NRC and 9+ more programs.
