3D printing trailblazer Ai Build has raised £730,000 in a seed funding round.
The London start-up, which launched last year, is already working with Formula One several top automotive and motorsport manufacturers to deliver large-scale 3D printing of car parts at speed in factories.
The firm was also recently selected to participate in the prestigious ATI Boeing Accelerator, and has started working with GKN Aerospace and Rolls-Royce alongside Boeing.
The funding round was led by SuperSeed, a London–based VC that specialises in business automation and Industry 4.0 investments.
Also joining the round is William Tunstall-Pedoe, the British entrepreneur who was one of the inventors behind Alexa, Amazon’s voice assistant.
Ai Build says its solution has demonstrated considerable improvements for customers, who have been able to achieve a 90% reduction in labour costs and a 70% reduction in failed print attempts.
This investment will enable Ai Build to accelerate commercialisation of its technology.
Daghan Cam, co-founder and CEO, said: “Even though 3D printing has come a long way, it is still extremely difficult to produce large, complex parts with the consistency required by the manufacturing industry.
“At present, parts that only take a few hours of printing time, take manufacturers weeks or months to prepare. Lack of automation is the barrier. To solve this problem, we use smart algorithms and data for maximum efficiency, reliability and scalability.
“We are very excited and humbled to be backed by investors who share our vision to create the factories of the future.”
Mads Jensen, managing partner at SuperSeed, said: “Daghan and his team at Ai Build are already doing business with some of the world’s leading automotive and industrial companies, but this is just the first step of what they can do.
“Additive Manufacturing has the potential to change how things are made, and as the technology matures, there is an ever-growing demand for automating and optimising the process. Ai Build is well positioned to capitalise on this opportunity based on the more than five years of R&D that has gone into the platform.
“At SuperSeed we back smart, technical founders who are looking to transform how business is done using technology, and that description fits the Ai Build team perfectly. We are excited for the journey and potential ahead.”
3D printingIndustry 4.0