We are advising ÄIO (äio tech OÜ), an Estonian biotechnology company developing sustainable next-generation fats and oils, during negotiations with global manufacturing partners.
These cooperation arrangements represent an important milestone in ÄIO’s scale-up journey, supporting the transition from pilot production to industrial-scale manufacturing. The agreements focus on the development, deployment and licensing of ÄIO’s technology for large-scale oil production.
Sustainable alternatives to conventional fats and oils
ÄIO develops sustainable fats and oils by transforming, through biotechnology, side-streams from the agricultural, food and wood industries into high-value lipid ingredients.
The company’s mission is to provide scalable alternatives to widely used fats (like palm, coconut, animal and fish oils) and petroleum-based sources, helping reduce dependency on resource-intensive and environmentally challenging supply chains.
Compared to conventional oil production, ÄIO’s fermentation-based technology has the potential to reduce land use by up to 97% and water consumption by up to 90%.
ÄIO’s ingredients (RedOil, ZymaLipid Complex and Encapsulated oil) have various applications for food, cosmetics, and household products, offering manufacturers sustainable and functional alternatives.
Strategic cooperation as part of growth
We supported ÄIO during the negotiation of key cooperation agreements, and advised on contractual matters specific to the biotechnology sector.
Given the fast pace of innovation and strong competitive dynamics in biotechnology, such agreements require particular attention to both commercial and strategic considerations. It was essential to ensure clear frameworks around the future use and commercialisation of the technology, intellectual property ownership and control, and robust protection of confidential information and trade secrets.
The contractual structures also needed to align with ÄIO’s long-term growth ambitions and intellectual property strategy, requiring a strong understanding of the company’s future business plans and commercial direction.
Our services and client team
Our team advised ÄIO throughout the negotiation process, including carrying out the structuring, drafting and review of cooperation agreements. The scope of our work included:
- mapping contractual and commercial risks
- advising on intellectual property use, ownership and protection
- drafting confidentiality arrangements and trade secret safeguards
- creating contractual frameworks for long-term cooperation and technology commercialisation
The client team was led by Lise-Lotte Lääne, head of our Life Sciences team, together with associates Helery Maidlas and Marian Moldau.
