Kraig Biocraft Laboratories Inc (KBLB)

[TRUISM]

*** 12/3/24-CURRENT (KBLB) CHALLENGES ***

“Our next inflection point is to produce the first metric ton of spider silk,” Thompson says. He adds that he is in discussions with “a number of significant players” to test Kraig’s recombinant spider silk on their machinery. The limiting factor, until now, has been an insufficient supply of product.

“It’s hard to run a test when the world supply of spider silk has been measured in tens of kilograms,” he points out.

To overcome supply problems, Kraig Biocraft plans to make good use of its new manufacturing site. “We have a backlog of order for prototype materials so they can make a test run,” Thompson says. According to Kraig Biocraft’s website, a kilogram of recombinant spider silk costs less than $300 to produce—about one tenth the cost of the protein alone using vat fermentation production methods.

“To my knowledge, there are only three other companies involved in making spider silk: AMSilk, Bolt Threads, and Spiber,” Thompson says. Each uses vat fermentation to make the spider silk proteins, which he says significantly increases the costs.

Thompson envisions a future of composite fibers in which spider silk is mixed with other textiles: “A lot of work continues to be done in that area, and it is accelerating.” He also points out that there are thousands of markets and technical applications for the advanced materials that are possible using recombinant spider silk: “We’re interested in capturing as much market share as we can, and we’re looking at new and expanded mechanical properties.”

In the very near future, recombinant spider silk may be found in a range of products, from tissue scaffolds and sutures to performance fabrics. In that world, capes or expedition jackets made of spider silk won’t be rarities. They’ll be off-the-shelf articles.

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