About Terraxy

COMPANY HISTORY

Terraxy is on a mission to create sustainable soil fertility that lasts.

Terraxy is a spin-off from King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST). Founded in 2023, by Caltech-PhD and KAUST professor, Himanshu Mishra, and his former PhD student, Adair Gallo. After several years of R&D at KAUST, the duo gathered forces with other team members to start the company. Over a short period, Terraxy has achieved several important milestones that have unlocked the potential of long-term soil amendments for arid regions. Terraxy is now scaling up its technologies to contribute to the Vision of transformation in Saudi Arabia

AWARDS

Recognitions & Achievements

Core Team

Prof. Himanshu Mishra

Co-founder & chairman

Himanshu loves connecting the dots to unleash impact.

He leads a multidisciplinary research program that translates scientific breakthroughs into sustainable technologies, such as CarboSoil™ and SandX™. “Start simple, add complexity”. At Terraxy, Himanshu oversees funding, strategic partnerships, and team culture.

“CarboSoil™ will be the enabler for giga-scale desert rehabilitation and global food-water-energy-climate security.”

Core Team

Dr. Adair Gallo

CEO and co-founder

Adair is a curious hands-on generalist engineer.

With background in Chemical Engineering and a PhD in Environmental Science, Adair believes that the solution to climate change lies in the massive scales of profit-driven agriculture. 
“Only with the free energy from photosynthesis and the agricultural 1/3 coverage of Earth’s land surface that we will be able to significantly capture carbon and store in our soils.
Only profit can finance carbon sequestration,
and better soils deliver bigger profits. 
Let’s make a REAL change!”

Core Team

Eng. Batool Albar

General manager

Batool seeks knowledge and use this knowledge to improve the world.

Holding a master’s degree in Environmental Science and Engineering, Batool focused on engineering soil amendments to improve the fertility and functionality of arid soils. Now with Terraxy, she aims to scale such technologies, driving long-term impact in desert ecosystems and contributing to global sustainability efforts.
Core Team

Eng. Bruno Jardim

Product manager

Bruno is a chemical engineer who’s always pushing boundaries.

He built the first-ever continuous plastic pyrolysis plant using molten salt as heat transfer fluid. Now with Terraxy wants to make a difference in solving the biggest man-made problem, the climate change.
For Bruno, engineering is all about finding the most efficient ways to give back to society. He lives by the motto: “Strive for perfection in everything you do. Take the best that exists and make it better. When it doesn’t exist, design it.” – Sir Henry Royce.

Advisory board

Prof. Lukas Van Zwiten

Scientific advisor to Terraxy

Lukas is legend of soil chemistry. 

He was involved in the first controlled field trials with biochar along with Stephen Joseph and colleagues back in 2006. 
Lukas completed a PhD at the University of Sydney in 1995 and joined New South Wales Department of Primary Industries (a Government Department) where he is now a Senior Principal Research Scientist and Director of Wollongbar Primary Industries Institute. He spent time at Purdue University under Prof Suresh Rao in 2001 as part of a Churchill fellowship. His research focus includes C and N cycling, and how this relates to soil C storage (for climate mitigation/ adaptation, productivity and resilience), unravelling soil rhizosphere and microbial processes. He was a Web of Science Highly Cited Researcher in 2018-2020 with over 200 published papers, including works in Nature Climate Change and Nature Communications. He has also been a farmer since 2015, enabling him to walk the talk. 

Advisory board

Athanasios-Thanos Papanikolaou

LANDSCAPING INDUSTRY ADVISOR

Thanos brings 35 years of experience in horticulture, nursery and landscaping industries. He has a strong technical foundation spanning low- and mid-tech greenhouses, as well as high-tech indoor and vertical growing facilities. Additionally, his entrepreneurial experience has honed his leadership skills, enabling him to effectively manage, train, and motivate teams of all sizes to achieve shared goals.
Advisory board

Ehab Abbas

Business advisor

Ehab is an expert in business strategy and execution. 

Ehab is an accomplished executive known for his strategic acumen and hands-on experience in business and organizational development. Starting in global organizations and evolving into a revered business consultant, Ehab has been instrumental in mentoring technology entrepreneurs and facilitating the commercialization of innovative technologies.
Since 2020, Ehab has worked as a Business Consultant at KAUST Innovation Ventures (KIV), where he has spearheaded the development of best practices and resources, which enabled the fund and the university spinouts accelerate technology commercialization and capacity building. 
Before joining KIV, Ehab had distinguished careers at major corporations, including Motorola, Fosroc (Former BP Subsidiary), and Carboline Canada, as well as a large family-owned conglomerate in the GCC. In these roles, Ehab had the opportunity to practice and develop expertise in widely diverse and dynamic B2B and B2C contexts. 
Ehab believes the only sustainable source of competitive advantage lies in the speed and intensity of actions. He is motivated by the purpose rather than the specifics of execution. He is driven by overarching purposes, values clarity of end goals, and adeptly navigates the uncertainties of the journey and the imperfections of plans. His commitment to maximizing shareholders’ value is matched by a conscientious duty of care towards all stakeholders, ensuring the sustainability of value creation through diligent governance and resource stewardship.

Execution Team

Eng. Raymund Gesalta

Maintenance manager

Raymund has a  background of Electronics Aviation and Communication Engineering. More than 20 years experience in instrumentation installation, commissioning and applic
Raymund Believes everything is possible and can be build as a engineering perspective with aid of science and technology.
Hobbies and sports and other interest.
Playing Badminton, Cycling and Snorkling.

Execution Team

Eng. Osama Atef

Product deployment manager

A highly skilled irrigation expert with over 16 years of experience in designing and managing landscaping and agricultural irrigation projects. Osama is proficient in advanced irrigation technologies, including drip irrigation, sprinklers, central pivot, Golf Courses, remote sensing, and data analytics.
Osama believes that effective irrigation system management, encompassing efficient design, tailored irrigation applications, and robust post-implementation oversight, is instrumental in conserving water resources and expanding agricultural land area while maintaining current water consumption levels. This approach contributes significantly to ensuring the long-term sustainability of water resources

Execution Team

MBA. Ziad Dawood

Operations manager

Ziad is a talented team leader.
He has a technical background in Mechanical Eng. and a Master of Business Admi
He has gained more than 15 years of practical experience. And is a commited hard-worker who cares deeply about quality and safety.
“I believe that the best is yet to come.”

Execution Team

Zain Ahmed

Production Technician

Zain is an experienced hands-on agricultural engineer specialized in plumbing and irrigation installation and maintenance. He is dedicated and skilled at building all types of operation systems.

He has been with the team since the early prototypes for Carbosoil and SandX production and has helped the team evolve over the years.

Execution Team

Fatehi Al-Qaisi

Production Technician

Fatehi is a hardworking and ambitious technician skilled in maintenance and construction work. His enthusiasm and eagerness to learn and help set him apart. He has contributed with Terraxy since the early days in field trials and reactor maintenance.