MakerBot builds desktop 3D printers and an additive manufacturing ecosystem focused on accessibility, reliability, safety and ease-of-use. The company says it empowers engineers and manages Thingiverse, the largest 3D printing community. MakerBot participates on the UL 2904 standards committee addressing emissions and emphasizes safety, emissions control, precision and ease-of-use. In a strategic merger with Ultimaker the combined business aims to accelerate development of hardware, software and materials and broaden its portfolio for a wide spectrum of customers and applications. The merged entity will pursue responsible and sustainable manufacturing and expand sales and operations across the Americas, EMEA and APAC. Headquarters will be maintained in both the Netherlands and New York. The new company secured €60M ($62.4M) in additional funding from existing investors NPM Capital and Stratasys to boost innovation and market expansion. MakerBot builds microwave-sized compact fabrication machines aimed at home rapid prototyping and desktop manufacturing. The company started in 2009 with roughly $75,000 in seed money. Since then it has assembled and sold about 5,200 machines. MakerBot has been expanding its team and recently added Brad Feld to its board. The company faces competition from fabrication-by-mail services like Shapeways and anticipates hardware competitors iterating on speed and materials. While hardware is hard to scale quickly, the firm emphasizes the significance of sub-$1,000 rapid prototyping devices for consumers.

Total raised

$72M

Funding rounds

2

Latest round

Equity

Latest activity

May 2022