# Ben Hernandez

> Ben Hernandez is the founder and CEO of Numat, a Chicago deep-tech company that treats chemistry like software. Numat designs metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), nanoscale materials that capture, hold, and even destroy specific molecules with atomic precision. Trained as an engineer with a law degree and an MBA, and a former private equity investor, Hernandez turned a Northwestern lab idea into the world's first industrial-scale MOF manufacturing campus, powering safer hazardous-gas storage for the semiconductor industry through its ION-X product and pushing toward industrial decarbonization.

- **Role:** Founder & CEO at Numat Technologies
- **Organizations:** Numat Technologies, Chicago Council on Global Affairs (Emerging Leaders)
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** Engineering, Northwestern University, Juris Doctorate, cum laude, Northwestern Pritzker School of Law, MBA, with distinction, Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University
- **Known for:** Founded and scaled Numat from a university lab concept into a company with the world's first industrial-scale MOF manufacturing campus, Commercialized ION-X, MOF-based cylinders that store hazardous semiconductor gases subatmospherically, distributed globally by Merck KGaA and EMD Electronics, Raised a $40M Series C in 2025 (Aramco Ventures), pushing total funding above $70M

## Career timeline

- **pre-Numat** — Management consultant serving industrial technology and advanced materials clients
- **pre-Numat** — Executive at a global private equity firm with $30B+ in invested capital, leading strategy, operations and human capital
- **~2012** — Co-founded Numat Technologies out of Northwestern University with a chemical engineering PhD student and a young chemistry faculty member (Dr. Omar Farha)
- **2016** — Numat launched ION-X, a MOF-based system for safely storing hazardous electronics gases
- **2017** — Named to the Chicago Council on Global Affairs Emerging Leaders cohort
- **2021** — Named by Goldman Sachs as one of the 100 Most Exceptional Entrepreneurs
- **2022** — Named again by Goldman Sachs as one of the 100 Most Exceptional Entrepreneurs
- **2023** — Announced the world's first industrial-scale MOF manufacturing campus in Chicago's West Humboldt Park
- **2025** — Closed a $40M Series C with backing from Aramco Ventures to scale MOF production for industrial sustainability

## Achievements

- Founded and scaled Numat from a university lab concept into a company with the world's first industrial-scale MOF manufacturing campus
- Commercialized ION-X, MOF-based cylinders that store hazardous semiconductor gases subatmospherically, distributed globally by Merck KGaA and EMD Electronics
- Raised a $40M Series C in 2025 (Aramco Ventures), pushing total funding above $70M
- Named one of Goldman Sachs' 100 Most Exceptional Entrepreneurs in both 2021 and 2022
- Selected for the 2017 Chicago Council on Global Affairs Emerging Leaders program

## Latest updates

- **2025-05** — Numat closed a $40M Series C led with participation from Aramco Ventures to accelerate MOF production and industrial sustainability.
- **2023-11** — Numat announced construction of the world's first industrial-scale MOF manufacturing campus in Chicago.

## Links

- Website: https://numat.com
- LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/ben-hernandez-30ba228
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/numattech

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/ben-hernandez
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-07-01