John's idea for Airbuild was born from his study of business sustainability at Arizona State University, while David's drive came from growing up in Nigeria, where clean water was a daily struggle—an experience that followed him when he immigrated to the US at sixteen to study mechanical engineering. The two connected through a mutual friend, found immediate synergy around the idea of carbon capture, and realized they needed a scientific powerhouse to make it a reality. Enter Dr. Richard Mariita, who joined as Co-founder and Chief Scientific Advisor. Growing up in Kenya, Richard tragically lost his mother and sister to waterborne diseases—a profound loss that ignited his lifelong dedication to microbiology and clean water innovation.