# Willy Halim

> Willy Halim is a chemical engineer and the founder of BANIQL, a San Jose climate-tech startup he started in his backyard in 2021 to refine nickel and cobalt without the heat, pressure, and toxic waste of conventional mining. Trained at UC Berkeley and Cornell and seasoned as a battery engineer in Silicon Valley, he built a low-temperature, atmospheric-pressure chemical process that BANIQL says uses about 80% less energy than industry-standard high-pressure acid leaching, produces net-zero toxic waste, and turns leftovers into fertilizer and construction material. The company raised a $1.6M seed round led by BEENEXT in 2024 and added 500 Global and Genesia Ventures in 2025, aiming first at Indonesia, which holds roughly a quarter of the world's nickel.

- **Role:** Founder and CEO at BANIQL
- **Organizations:** BANIQL, Imprint Energy, EnerVenue, EEnotech
- **Education:** B.S., University of California, Berkeley, M.S., Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Cornell University
- **Known for:** Founded BANIQL and developed a patent-pending low-temperature, atmospheric-pressure process for extracting nickel and cobalt from laterite ore, Process reported to use about 80% less energy and run at up to 70% lower temperatures than conventional high-pressure acid leaching (HPAL), with net-zero toxic waste, Raised a $1.6M seed round (2024) led by BEENEXT, with 500 Global and Genesia Ventures joining in 2025

## Career timeline

- **—** — Researched lithium-sulfur batteries at Cornell University's Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
- **—** — Worked as a battery engineer in Silicon Valley, including roles at Imprint Energy, EnerVenue, and EEnotech
- **2021** — Started BANIQL in his backyard in January; incorporated the company in California in October
- **2022** — Filed BANIQL's first patent in July; MVP samples validated by third-party labs in South Korea in December
- **2024** — Closed a $1.6M (AU$2.4M) seed round led by BEENEXT; began pre-pilot production targeting 100 kg/month
- **2025** — Raised additional venture funding from 500 Global and Genesia Ventures (October)

## Achievements

- Founded BANIQL and developed a patent-pending low-temperature, atmospheric-pressure process for extracting nickel and cobalt from laterite ore
- Process reported to use about 80% less energy and run at up to 70% lower temperatures than conventional high-pressure acid leaching (HPAL), with net-zero toxic waste
- Raised a $1.6M seed round (2024) led by BEENEXT, with 500 Global and Genesia Ventures joining in 2025
- Secured 20+ tonnes of nickel ore from Indonesia and achieved third-party lab validation in South Korea
- Built an IP-first strategy with patent filings beginning in 2022 and Patent Cooperation Treaty plans across major mining markets

## Latest updates

- **2025-10** — BANIQL raised additional venture funding from 500 Global and Genesia Ventures to support its APAC expansion.
- **2024-05** — BANIQL closed its $1.6M seed round led by BEENEXT, targeting Indonesia as its first market.

## Links

- Website: https://baniql.com
- LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/willy-halim-04144a66

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/willy-halim
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-06-20