Barocal can cool your food and drink by squeezing a hunk of plastic crystals

Barocal raised $10 million in seed funding to commercialize its solid-state heating and cooling technology.

The system uses pressure-responsive materials instead of conventional refrigerants, aiming to work in fridges and HVAC.

The company says early prototypes are already matching compressor-based performance.

If it scales, the approach could reduce energy use and avoid climate-warming refrigerant leaks.