Eureka: Soundproofing with Mushrooms – How Greener Panels Are Making Their Way into Studios

The Entrepreneurs | Monocle Radio
Aired: September 5, 2025
Guest: Robert Strazer, Founder of Sporinex
Host: Tom Edwards

Episode Overview

This episode of "Eureka" on Monocle Radio dives into the future of sustainable soundproofing, exploring Sporinex—an innovative company transforming acoustic panels by leveraging mycelium (the root-like structure of mushrooms) and circular waste like wood dust and blue-green algae. Tom Edwards interviews founder Robert Strazer, who shares his journey from woodworker and musician to eco-inventor, outlining how biodegradable panels could change not only studios, but our entire approach to waste and carbon footprint in design.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Problem with Traditional Acoustic Panels

[00:00–01:20]

• Traditional panels use petroleum-based foams, common in studios, restaurants, and theaters.
• These materials are non-renewable, hard to recycle, and environmentally detrimental.

Quote:
"Perhaps you know this foam base like acoustical panels... and they're right now made from petroleum mainly. And what we are doing, we're taking wood waste... and creating sound panels of that." —Robert Strazer [01:15]

2. The Sporinex Solution: Mycelium and Circular Waste

[01:21–03:45]

• Sporinex collects wood dust—a material often burnt or trashed—and inoculates it with mycelium.
• The result is a sturdy, sound-dampening panel that can be composted after use.
• The company is piloting similar methods with problematic algae from the Baltic Sea, addressing both pollution and waste streams.

Quote:
"So now it's something that we want to get, not just waste, you know, it's something we want to get rid of, but we don't want to like let the CO2 in it go in the atmosphere... we are taking that and growing mycelium and creating a sound panels." —Robert Strazer [02:05]

3. The Full-Circle Philosophy: From Studio to Soil

[03:45–04:20]

• At the end of their life, panels can be broken down and used as garden or forest fertilizer, literally returning the carbon to nature.
• This aligns with circular economy ideals—minimizing waste and maximizing utility.

Quote:
"You can take your sound panels from the studio and use it as a fertilizer for your garden flowers or in this case, trees. So eventually the carbon... goes back as... fertilizer for the woods." —Robert Strazer [03:55]

4. Personal Inspiration: A Woodworker and Musician’s Perspective

[04:20–05:15]

• Robert’s childhood fascination with wood intersected with his experience as a musician, noticing both the environmental and aesthetic downsides of foam-filled studios.
• Frustration with toxic and energy-intensive adhesives led him to experiment, inspired by a friend’s home mushroom kit.

Memorable Moment:
"Tried it and it worked out great. It was like I could make almost any form. Now you just put in mold and you have like any form possible." —Robert Strazer [05:05]

5. Artistic Buy-In and Proof of Concept

[05:16–05:50]

• Musicians and other creative professionals are intrigued by the sustainability and story behind mushroom-based panels.
• Robert believes if the panels stand up to the strict sound standards and scrutiny of the music industry, they will excel in any environment.

Quote:
"If you want to do something with a sound, then the music industry is the best one because it's going to be the hardest feedback, it's going to be the hardest answers, the hardest questions." —Robert Strazer [05:25]

6. Goals and Impact

[05:51–06:41]

• Sporinex aims to produce enough panels this year to cover 1,000 square meters, which could replace 50 tons of CO₂ emissions.
• Initial production goals: At least 100 square meters per month.

Notable Quotes and Moments

• On Inspiration:
  “Oh, actually this kind of works.” —Robert Strazer on discovering wood waste’s potential [04:50]
• On Mushroom Tech:
  “Believe me, when you say to musician... 'this is a mushroom'—they are sold already.” —Robert Strazer [05:16]

Important Timestamps

• [00:00–01:10]: Introduction, Robert’s background
• [01:10–03:00]: Conventional panels, Sporinex’s process, wood waste and algae story
• [03:00–04:00]: Circularity, end-of-life compostability
• [04:00–05:20]: Robert’s personal journey from woodshop to sound panels
• [05:20–06:10]: Musicians as early adopters, stress-testing the product
• [06:10–06:41]: Ambitious production and environmental goals

Conclusion

This episode offers a fascinating look at how ecological creativity can meet professional standards, challenging old assumptions about what high-performance building materials can be made from. Sporinex’s story is one of hands-on experimentation meeting urgent sustainability needs—a journey from a dusty workshop, through a piano studio, to a new vision for circular, biodegradable architecture.

Learn More: sporinex.com