MagnoTherm and the EIC Accelerator: Fridges Cooled by Magnets
Most cooling still relies on what MagnoTherm calls "century-old gas compression cooling systems" and their refrigerants. MagnoTherm, a 2019 spin-off from the Technical University of Darmstadt, cools without refrigerant: a magnetocaloric material heats up when magnetised and cools when the field is removed, and cycling it pumps heat out of the fridge.
The European Innovation Council granted €2,500,000 towards a €3.73 million project that, according to CORDIS, "successfully introduced magnetic cooling into the market with certified magnetic cooling devices". A magnetic fridge premiered at an EDEKA supermarket in 2024, and in February 2026 MagnoTherm announced a pilot with REWE Group in about ten stores. Unit numbers and revenue are not public.
Company file
- Legal entity
- MagnoTherm Solutions GmbH, HRB 99483, Amtsgericht Darmstadt
- Founded
- September 2019, TU Darmstadt spin-off
- Leadership
- Co-CEOs Timur Sirman and Maximilian Fries
- Products
- POLARIS beverage cooler, ECLIPSE toploader; STELLAR in development
- Customers named
- EDEKA (premiere), REWE (pilot), MyMuesli, Gastro-Cool
- Investors
- Extantia Capital, Revent, BMH Hessen, LAUDA, ENGIE New Ventures
- EIC project
- MCD, 1 Jun 2022 to 31 Jan 2025, closed
- EIC funding
- Grant first
Where MagnoTherm Stands Today
The REWE pilot will put ECLIPSE toploader fridges into about ten supermarkets in one German region later in 2026, after a multi-week test in a model store. In June 2026 MagnoTherm presented STELLAR, a modular platform for more than 125 kW of cooling that uses high-temperature superconducting magnets, and said it was "actively seeking technical, commercial, and financial partners". It also works on magnetic cooling for hydrogen liquefaction. German register data compiled by North Data show the company active, with a new public grant for data centre cooling in April 2026.
The Technology: The Magnetocaloric Effect
According to the CORDIS report, the project achieved "a 40% efficiency improvement in magnetocaloric devices", proved the scalability and durability of LaFeSi, a lanthanum-iron-silicon alloy, as the cooling material, and introduced two products, POLARIS and ECLIPSE. In its 2023 funding announcement, co-CEO Timur Sirman said the technology is "up to 40 percent more efficient than conventional solutions" and produces no direct greenhouse gases.
"POLARIS and ECLIPSE demonstrated that this technology works in the real world. STELLAR is about unlocking its full potential."
Timur Sirman, CEO, MagnoTherm, June 2026What the EIC Project Promised, and What CORDIS Shows
The EIC project
The EU paid 67% of a €3.73M project
MCD ran from June 2022 to January 2025. The award was grant first.
CORDIS project 190183588. Values in € millions.
The project promised "highly efficient and sustainable refrigeration based on solid state magnetic cooling device". CORDIS reports certified devices on the market, "partnerships with global corporations" and pilot projects, but gives no cooling power, number of units in the field or customer names.
- A certified magnetic coolerDeliveredPOLARIS and ECLIPSE.
- Higher efficiencyDelivered40% gain, company figure.
- Retail customersPartialEDEKA premiere; REWE pilot.
- Volume deploymentNot shownNo unit numbers.
What Has Happened Since the Award
The record
From university lab to supermarket fridges
MagnoTherm brought certified magnetic fridges to market during the EIC project and signed a REWE pilot in 2026.
- Sep 2019FoundedTU Darmstadt spin-off
- Oct 2021EIC Accelerator cut-offMCD: refrigeration with a magnetic cooling device
- Jun 2022EIC project startsPOLARIS and ECLIPSE devices, LaFeSi material€2.50M grant
- Apr 2023Seed roundLed by Extantia Capital€6.3M
- Oct 2023ENGIE New VenturesInvests, seed total €6.8M
- Aug 2024EDEKAMagnetic fridge premieres in a supermarket
- Jan 2025EIC project endsCertified devices on the market
- Feb 2026REWE pilotECLIPSE fridges in about 10 stores
- Jun 2026STELLAR125 kW+ platform in development
MagnoTherm, CORDIS and German register data via North Data.
The Money
The award was "grant first"; we found no EIC Fund investment. MagnoTherm raised a €6.3 million seed round in April 2023, led by Extantia Capital, and ENGIE New Ventures joined in October 2023, bringing the seed to €6.8 million. It has also won German public grants. No Series A has been announced.
The money
Grants and equity since 2021
Disclosed financing: the EIC grant, the seed round including ENGIE New Ventures, and German public grants listed in register-linked data.
MagnoTherm, CORDIS and North Data. Values in € millions.
What cannot be checked
How many fridges MagnoTherm has sold, its revenue, the independent performance of its devices in stores and how it will fund STELLAR are not public.
Why Europe Should Care
The EU's F-gas regulation is phasing down fluorinated refrigerants. A German-made fridge with no refrigerant at all, which premiered at EDEKA and is due in a REWE pilot, is a direct answer. The EIC funded the step from prototype to certified product.
What the project promised
Efficient, sustainable refrigeration with a solid-state magnetic cooling device.
What the record shows
Certified products, a supermarket premiere, a REWE pilot and an industrial system in development.
The Verdict
On the shop floor, still in pilots
According to CORDIS and the company, MCD did what it promised: magnetic cooling went from lab to certified product and into supermarkets. The public record still shows pilots, not fleets, and the company is looking for partners and money for its next, industrial step.
MagnoTherm has not been asked for comment for this article. It is based entirely on company statements, EU project data and German register information, linked throughout.
Industry
EnergyHeating and cooling
- Focus
- Cooling systems
- Technologies
- Thermal engineering
- Superconducting magnets
- Keywords
- Refrigerant-free cooling
- Supermarkets
- Beverage coolers
- F-gas phase-out
- Hydrogen liquefaction