# Michael Alexander

> Michael Alexander is the co-founder and CEO of Addis Energy, a Somerville, Massachusetts startup turning the Earth's crust into a chemical reactor to make clean ammonia. A chemical engineer who spent more than eight years refining oil at Shell and Marathon Petroleum, he discovered geologic hydrogen at Harvard Business School and teamed up with classmate Charlie Mitchell and MIT professors Iwnetim Abate and Yet-Ming Chiang to commercialize a process that stimulates ammonia production from iron-rich rock underground. In December 2025 Addis raised an oversubscribed $8.3M seed round, bringing total funding to $17.3M.

- **Role:** Co-Founder & CEO at Addis Energy
- **Organizations:** Addis Energy, Harvard Business School, Marathon Petroleum, Shell, Air Products, EVCS
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** MBA, Harvard Business School, Chemical Engineering
- **Known for:** Co-founded and leads Addis Energy, commercializing a first-of-its-kind subsurface ammonia production process., Raised $17.3M in total funding, including an oversubscribed $8.3M seed round led by At One Ventures (Dec 2025)., Translated MIT materials-science research by Iwnetim Abate and Yet-Ming Chiang into a venture-backed company.

## Career timeline

- **pre-2022** — Spent 8+ years as a chemical engineer in oil and gas refining at Shell and Marathon Petroleum; also worked at Air Products.
- **2022** — Enrolled at Harvard Business School, where he first encountered geologic hydrogen.
- **2023** — Interned as an MBA Supply Chain Intern at EVCS; met co-founder Charlie Mitchell at Harvard.
- **2024** — Co-founded Addis Energy with Charlie Mitchell, Iwnetim Abate, and Yet-Ming Chiang; earned MBA from HBS.
- **2025-01** — Addis Energy emerged publicly with its geologic ammonia technology and $4.25M pre-seed funding.
- **2025-12** — Closed an oversubscribed $8.3M seed round led by At One Ventures, bringing total funding to $17.3M.

## Achievements

- Co-founded and leads Addis Energy, commercializing a first-of-its-kind subsurface ammonia production process.
- Raised $17.3M in total funding, including an oversubscribed $8.3M seed round led by At One Ventures (Dec 2025).
- Translated MIT materials-science research by Iwnetim Abate and Yet-Ming Chiang into a venture-backed company.
- Named a CERAWeek speaker, representing next-generation energy founders.

## Latest updates

- **2025-12** — Addis Energy closed an oversubscribed $8.3M seed round led by At One Ventures with Engine Ventures and Pillar VC; total funding reached $17.3M, funding an AI-assisted lab reactor and a first field pilot.
- **2025-01** — Addis Energy publicly launched its geologic ammonia technology, featured in MIT Technology Review.

## Links

- Website: https://addisenergy.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaeljosephalexander/

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/michael-alexander
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-06-22