Adelle Archer's Eterneva makes diamonds from cremated ashes

Eterneva, the Austin-based startup that turns cremated ashes of pets and loved ones into diamonds, announced Monday that it has raised $1.2 million in seed funding. Founded in 2017 by Adelle Archer and Garrett Ozar, the company extracts carbon from roughly half a cup of ashes and then puts the purified carbon through an extreme pressure and heat environment to create each diamond. It’s one of a handful of companies worldwide that offer the service. Key investors in the funding round include Notley Ventures founder Dan Graham, Spiritual Gangster founder Ian Lopatin, former Ralph Lauren president Eric Korman and data.world founder Brett Hurt. “I lost both of my parents years ago and know firsthand how limited the options were to celebrate their life,” Hurt, who also founded Bazaarvoice and Coremetrics, said in a written statement. “It is an honor to be among their first investors in such great company and in such a beautiful, memorable product matched with incredible customer service.” READ MORE: Austin startup finds unusual way to remember loved ones Archer said the funding will go toward hiring in sales, customer service and additional senior hires. Eterneva has eight employees, and Archer said the plan is to hire three more. Eterneva recently relocated to a 4,000 square-foot office in South Austin that includes an in-house diamond lab. The company currently uses a carbon purification facility in Pennsylvania and grows its diamonds in Germany, but Archer said Eterneva will eventually grow most of its diamonds at its Austin headquarters. The company has grown nearly 300 diamonds, according to Archer. “What’s super special is Eterneva is so much more than just a fast growing and successful company,” Archer said. “We really have a clear mission of changing the culture around grief.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices