Who is Julian Brown? Missing metro Atlanta inventor went viral for his unique solution to turn waste into fuel

Julian Brown, a young metro Atlanta inventor who previously made headlines for his unique solution to turn waste into fuel, has been missing for two weeks.

A young metro Atlanta inventor, who previously made headlines for his unique solution to turn waste into fuel, has been missing for two weeks, according to social media posts. Julian Brown, in his 20s, recently went viral for his invention – ‘Plastoline’ – which converts old plastics into usable fuels like gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel.

No major outlets have reported on or confirmed Brown’s alleged disappearance. However, netizens believe he may have been targeted for his invention as he shared a few concerning social media posts before going missing. His final post read, “Something is happening keep me in your prayers please SCREEN RECORD THIS. I don’t know e.”

Who is Julian Brown?
Brown, who has 1.7 million followers on Instagram, is a 776 Foundation Climate Fellow and founder of NatureJab. His groundbreaking invention, Plastoline, is a machine that transforms old plastics into useful fuels such as gasoline, diesel, and jet fuel.

Brown, who was concerned about environmental problems as a teenager, spent years experimenting and perfecting the product, according to y!entertainment. He even launched a GoFundMe campaign with a $1 million goal to make his vision come true.

Brown told Bold Journey about his invention in a March 2025 interview. “My name is Julian Brown and I am an innovator of Microwave Pyrolysis; a process that turns plastic waste into fuel,” he said. “I have dedicated the last 5 years of my life, starting in high school to this journey. My only background is in welding, I am certified in Stick, Mig, and Tig welding. I begun this journey because I saw a huge lack in the industry of all things recycling. We are told recycling is occurring, yet any observance to our natural world would show otherwise.”

Brown previously also opened up about his vision in an interview with The Root, saying, “The very issue we have is the production of plastic. The reason why recycling hasn’t been done is because it hasn’t been profitable. But now, we are able to make a product of super high value out of something that otherwise is just seen as waste.”

Brown, who was born in Tennessee, began welding when he was 17 years old and in high school. “In order to build a plastic into a fuel reactor, you need to know how to weld,” he said. “It’s great to have these skills because they can be used in your personal life, just as much as they can in business.”

“Beyond all I do, I really want the impact to go far beyond anything physical,” Brown further said.

He added, “If we immediately give up in our own minds before we even begin to find a solution, then how are we gonna get anywhere? Instead, we should come at it from a mindset of ‘How can this be done’ instead of ‘Can this be done.’”

Brown recalled that he wished to make something that would change the world when he was just a little boy. “When I was five years old, I told my mom that I was gonna create something that would change the world,” he recalled. “It’s always been within me — I just never knew what it was gonna be.”

Brown added that as long as he is around, “there will be no such thing as plastic waste — only untapped energy.”

Brown had traveled to Vancouver, Washington, to get his recycled diesel tested with some heavyweights in fuel testing, ASAP Labs. Some slammed his alternative energy as “horrible fuel” that would “destroy engines,” but his samples passed with flying colors in May this year. In fact, his samples showed more favorable results than its industry competitors.

It looks like it definitely burned cleaner,” an employee at ASAP Labs confirmed in a documentation of the fuel’s results. “It appears that this diesel probably burns cleaner than typical diesel.”

The lab employee admitted that he was skeptical of Brown’s invention, but also revealed that they run thousands of tests, and “the results don’t lie.”