Trump’s Project Vault Gives US Critical Mineral Startups a Boost

Yesterday, Trump announced a $12B critical minerals stockpile program ("Project Vault") to procure and store critical minerals in the U.S.

SOSV General Partner Duncan Turner told Bloomberg that the move signals a meaningful push to build a domestic critical-minerals supply chain - opening the door for next-gen mining, processing, and refining technologies in a sector where the U.S. remains heavily dependent on China. Additionally, a federal stockpile could help stabilize the price volatility facing founders and manufacturers.

With this new policy clarity and capital support, VCs are likely to ramp up investment across the critical-minerals value chain. However, this is a space SOSV has backed for years, including companies:

• Green Li-ion (lithium-ion battery recycling)
• Still Bright (copper extraction)
• Chemshift Technologies Inc. (lithium refining)
• Princeton Critical Minerals (litium extraction)
• And more