Pascal

High-Level Overview

Pascal Technologies is a Cambridge, MA-based startup developing solid refrigerant materials to revolutionize the HVAC industry, enabling more efficient, cheaper, and quieter air conditioners, heat pumps, refrigerators, and freezers without climate-warming gaseous refrigerants.[1][2][3][7] The company serves building owners, manufacturers, and consumers facing high energy costs and emissions from traditional vapor compression systems, which consume 20-40% of global energy for heating and cooling while leaking potent greenhouse gases.[1][3] Pascal's wax-like phase-change solids respond dramatically to low pressure changes—two orders of magnitude more than other solids—allowing systems that are 10-20% more efficient, smaller, and fully contained to prevent atmospheric leaks.[2][7]

With 9 employees, Pascal has raised $1M in pre-seed funding from The Engine and Blindspot Ventures, and is prototyping heat pumps while leveraging existing HVAC supply chains for rapid scaling.[1][3]

Origin Story

Pascal emerged from Jarad Mason's lab at Harvard's Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology, where research on materials for energy and health challenges identified a new class of pressure-sensitive solid refrigerants.[1][2] Mason, an Associate Professor of Chemistry, secured a Harvard Grid Accelerator grant to prototype the technology, leading him to cofound the company with former postdoc Adam Slavney (now CEO, with a PhD from Stanford on perovskite solar cells and Harvard postdoc experience) and former graduate student Jinyoung Seo (now CTO, PhD from Harvard).[1][2][4]

Both Slavney and Seo participated in the Activate entrepreneurial fellowship. The idea stemmed from discovering reversible, durable solids derived from commodities that operate in standard HVAC temperature ranges, addressing the 150-year-old industry's flaws.[2][3] Early traction includes the pre-seed raise and ongoing heat pump development.[1]

Core Differentiators

• Solid Refrigerant Breakthrough: Novel wax-like phase-change materials with extreme pressure sensitivity (100x better than prior solids), enabling reversible phase changes without gases, zero global warming potential, and containment to eliminate leaks.[1][2][7]
• Superior Performance: Systems are 10-20% more efficient, smaller, quieter, and cheaper due to low-pressure operation; compatible with existing HVAC components for faster manufacturing and adoption.[2][3][7]
• Scalability and Cost Savings: Uses commodity-derived materials in standard temperature/pressure ranges, reducing energy use, electrical load, and customer costs while fitting current supply chains—"changing what needs to be changed, and nothing beyond that."[2][3]
• Expert Team: Materials scientists and engineers like CEO Slavney (climate tech background), CTO Seo (pioneering refrigerant research), and mechanical engineer Matt Kelley (product scaling experience).[4]

Role in the Broader Tech Landscape

Pascal rides the global push for decarbonizing HVACR, a sector under pressure from regulations on high-global-warming-potential refrigerants and rising energy demands amid climate change—HVAC uses 20% of global energy and leaks gases equivalent to 7-10% of CO2 emissions.[1][3] Timing is ideal with heat pump incentives (e.g., IRA in the US), electrification trends, and efficiency mandates, as solids bypass gas-phase constraints that have limited alternatives for 150 years.[2][3]

Market forces like commodity pricing stability and existing infrastructure favor Pascal, enabling quick market entry versus full redesigns. It influences the ecosystem by accelerating clean cooling adoption worldwide, reducing grid strain, and enabling affordable systems in developing regions.[1][2][3]

Quick Take & Future Outlook

Pascal is poised to prototype commercial heat pumps soon, targeting HVAC manufacturers for integration and expanding to refrigerators/freezers.[1][2] Rising electrification, refrigerant phaseouts (e.g., HFCs), and AI-optimized buildings will amplify its edge, potentially capturing share in a $100B+ market.[3] Influence may grow via partnerships with incumbents like Carrier or Daikin, evolving from materials innovator to systems leader—transforming Pascal from Harvard spinout to climate tech cornerstone, delivering cooling without the climate cost.[4][7]