Introduction
Mark Herrema is an American entrepreneur, inventor and climate-technology executive. He is best known as the co-founder and CEO of Newlight Technologies, a California company that turns greenhouse gas into a natural biomaterial called AirCarbon. His work has connected biotechnology, manufacturing and environmental protection for more than two decades.
Interest in his personal life increased in 2025 when British YouTuber Emily Canham announced that she was expecting a child with her fiancé. The Mark Herrema connected with Emily is the same person who leads Newlight Technologies. Their relationship introduced him to a new audience beyond the business and climate-technology communities.
Quick Bio: Mark Herrema
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Full Name | Markus Donald Herrema |
| Known As | Mark Herrema |
| Profession | Entrepreneur, Inventor, Climate-Technology Executive |
| Known For | Co-founder and CEO of Newlight Technologies |
| Born | Early 1982 |
| Age (2026) | About 44 years old |
| Nationality | American |
| Education | Princeton University |
| Graduation Year | 2004 |
| Company | Newlight Technologies |
| Founded | 2003 |
| Co-founder | Kenton Kimmel |
| Major Innovation | AirCarbon biomaterial |
| Relationship Status | Engaged |
| Fiancée | Emily Canham |
| Children | One publicly documented child with Emily Canham |
| Ex-Wife | No reliably confirmed public information |
| Net Worth | Not officially disclosed |
| Current Role | Co-founder and CEO of Newlight Technologies |
| Notable Recognition | TIME100 Climate 2023 |
Who Is Mark Herrema?
Mark Herrema, whose fuller name appears as Markus Donald Herrema in patent records, co-founded Newlight Technologies with his former high-school classmate Kenton Kimmel in 2003. He became the company’s chief executive and helped turn an unusual scientific idea into a commercial business. Newlight is headquartered in Huntington Beach, California.
As CEO, Herrema has been involved in fundraising, production development, corporate partnerships and intellectual property. He has also represented Newlight at industry events and in international publications. Although he is now known to some people as Emily Canham’s fiancé, his main public identity remains connected with AirCarbon and climate-friendly manufacturing.
Mark Herrema’s Age and Education
Mark was born in early 1982. Reports published in 2015 described him as 33, while a January 2023 business profile identified him as 40. These dated references place his birth between January and early May 1982, making him 44 years old as of September 2026. His exact birthday has not been publicly shared.
He attended Princeton University and graduated in 2004. His main field was politics and political theory, but he also studied physics, mathematics and chemistry. This combination gave him an understanding of public policy and scientific problem-solving. While at Princeton, he considered subjects such as agricultural subsidies, world hunger and the economic forces behind environmental problems.
The Beginning of Newlight Technologies
Herrema’s business idea began after he read about methane released by cattle and other agricultural sources. Most discussions at that time treated greenhouse gas as waste that should be taxed, buried or prevented from entering the atmosphere. He started considering whether carbon could instead become a useful manufacturing resource.
He discussed the idea with Kenton Kimmel, who had a scientific background, and they established Newlight Technologies in 2003. Their first experiments were carried out with limited resources and equipment obtained from ordinary stores. They spent around ten years improving the microorganisms, production system, gas delivery and recovery process before reaching commercial-scale manufacturing.
How AirCarbon Works
AirCarbon is based on a natural polymer called polyhydroxybutyrate, commonly known as PHB. Certain microorganisms produce PHB inside their cells as an energy-storage material. Newlight supplies selected microorganisms with air, greenhouse gas, water, minerals and other required inputs in a controlled production environment.
As the organisms consume the carbon-containing gas, they grow and store PHB. The material is then collected, purified and processed into powder or pellets. It can be melted and formed into different products using manufacturing methods similar to those used for ordinary thermoplastics. It has been used in foodware, fashion accessories, packaging and other consumer goods.
Newlight describes AirCarbon as carbon-negative because its production process is designed to remove more carbon-equivalent gas than it releases. The company also presents it as reusable, home-compostable and ocean-degradable. Its material has received food-contact clearance and has been developed as an alternative to products traditionally made with petroleum-based plastic.
Business Growth, Products and Recognition
AirCarbon has been used to manufacture straws, forks, knives, sunglasses, wallets, bags and other products. Newlight developed consumer brands such as Restore and Covalent while also working with larger companies. By January 2023, AirCarbon had reportedly been used in more than 50 million products.
Companies connected with AirCarbon development or commercial use have included Shake Shack, Nike, H&M, Dell, Hewlett-Packard, IKEA and Virgin. Newlight also developed relationships in hospitality, automotive production, fashion and technology. In 2023, the company stated that its products and materials were reaching more than 5,000 locations worldwide.
Newlight completed a $125 million equity investment round in August 2023. Participants included GenZero, Oxy Low Carbon Ventures and Charter Next Generation. The money was intended to increase AirCarbon production and support the company’s expansion. Newlight was also selected for the Amazon Devices Climate Tech Accelerator in 2025.
The company received a Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Award from the US Environmental Protection Agency in 2016. It has also received recognition from Popular Science, the Nova Institute and the World Economic Forum. Herrema was included in the TIME100 Climate list in 2023 for his work on materials made from greenhouse gas.
Emily Canham and Mark Herrema
Emily Canham is a British YouTuber and social-media creator known for beauty, fashion, lifestyle and travel content. She began posting videos as a teenager and built an audience of more than one million YouTube followers. Originally from Kettering, England, she later moved to Los Angeles, where Newlight Technologies is also based in California.
Before Mark, Emily had a public relationship with Busted musician James Bourne. Their relationship reportedly began in 2018 and ended in 2023. Emily kept her later relationship with Herrema quiet, so followers did not know much about the couple until she shared her pregnancy announcement in August 2025.
Emily identified Mark in the announcement and revealed that they were engaged. The news confirmed that the climate-technology entrepreneur and Emily’s previously private partner were the same individual. She expressed her excitement about becoming a mother and creating a family with her fiancé.
The couple has not explained exactly when they began dating or how they met. They have also avoided turning their relationship into regular online content. Mark continues to use his public platforms mainly for professional subjects, while Emily shares only selected parts of their family life.
Is Emily Canham Mark Herrema’s Wife?
Emily is publicly known as Mark Herrema’s fiancée rather than his wife. Their engagement was confirmed in 2025, but they have not announced a wedding. Reports published after the birth of their child continued to describe Mark as Emily’s fiancé. Therefore, describing them as engaged is more accurate than saying they are married.
Because they share a home and child, people sometimes use the phrase “Mark Herrema’s wife” when searching for Emily. The couple may decide to marry privately, particularly because they have kept most of their relationship away from public attention. Until they announce a marriage, however, Emily should be described as his partner or fiancée.
Claims about a Mark Herrema ex-wife also appear on a few celebrity-style websites and discussion forums. Established professional biographies and mainstream reports do not name a former wife or provide details of an earlier divorce. It would therefore be inaccurate to connect him with a particular woman based only on internet speculation.
This does not necessarily establish every detail of his earlier personal life, which he has kept separate from his work. It simply means that Emily is his only publicly documented fiancée or partner in current reporting. Articles naming an alleged former spouse without supporting records should not be treated as dependable biographies.
Mark Herrema’s Children and Family Life
Emily welcomed the couple’s child in late 2025 after describing her pregnancy as difficult and the delivery as smooth. She shared her happiness about becoming a parent but did not publish the baby’s name, gender or face. Their child is Emily’s first and the couple’s first publicly documented child together.
Mark and Emily appear determined to provide their child with privacy. Emily has shared small parts of her experience as a new mother without turning the baby into public content. Mark follows an even quieter approach, rarely discussing his home life during interviews connected with Newlight.
Some websites claim that Herrema had children before meeting Emily, but established reporting does not provide names or evidence for those claims. The safest description is that he and Emily share one publicly known child. Further details about his family should come directly from the couple rather than online rumours.
Their relationship brings together two different careers. Emily works in digital media, beauty and lifestyle content, while Mark works in biotechnology and sustainable manufacturing. Despite their different public roles and approximate 15-year age difference, they have built a private family life in California.
Mark Herrema’s Net Worth and Current Work
Mark Herrema’s exact net worth has not been disclosed. Some online estimates place it between $10 million and $50 million, but those figures are not supported by detailed financial records. Newlight is a private company, so information about his salary, ownership percentage, personal investments, debts and other assets is unavailable.
The company’s investment rounds should not be treated as Mark’s personal money. The $125 million raised in 2023 was intended for business growth, manufacturing and research. However, as a co-founder of a well-funded company, Herrema probably owns valuable private equity. His actual wealth would depend on his shareholding and Newlight’s value during a future sale or public offering.
As of 2026, he continues to serve as Newlight Technologies’ co-founder and CEO. His recent work has focused on increasing AirCarbon production, expanding commercial partnerships and protecting the company’s technology through patents. Patent records from 2024 and 2025 continue to identify Markus Donald Herrema as an inventor.
His long-term goal is to make greenhouse gas valuable enough that industries choose it as a manufacturing resource. Instead of relying only on environmental rules, he wants AirCarbon to compete through performance and commercial demand. This belief has guided Newlight from its early experiments to millions of manufactured products.
Conclusion
Mark Herrema is a Princeton-educated entrepreneur who co-founded Newlight Technologies in 2003. Now 44 years old, he has spent more than two decades developing AirCarbon, a biomaterial created when microorganisms consume greenhouse gas. His company has attracted major investment, corporate partners, patents and international recognition.
He is also the fiancé of British content creator Emily Canham. The couple announced their engagement and pregnancy in 2025 and welcomed a child later that year. Emily is not yet publicly confirmed as his wife, while claims about an ex-wife or earlier children remain unsupported. Although his exact net worth is unknown, Mark’s company leadership and founder equity indicate a successful business career built around climate technology.
