Participated · Series A · Oct 2021

CoLab offers a cloud-based collaboration platform that lets engineering teams review design files, capture and track feedback, and document issues from a single dashboard. Its tools integrate with enterprise systems like product lifecycle management and allow controlled sharing with suppliers while keeping select information private. Teams at Ford, Johnson Controls and Schneider Electric use CoLab to streamline design reviews and reduce administrative overhead. CoLab operates on a software-as-a-service model and stores customer design data such as 3D models and engineering drawings in the cloud. The company plans to introduce AI features in the coming months, using anonymized customer data to help explain design changes and automate routine tasks. Financially, revenue has doubled in the past six months, paid add-ons are planned this year and next, and the company plans to grow its headcount from 86 (mostly in its Newfoundland headquarters) to about 120 by year end. CoLab provides a web-based co-design and collaboration tool that lets teams share CAD, provide feedback with full mechanical context, and capture design data. The platform standardizes design reviews and simplifies collaboration to accelerate design cycles, drive continuous improvement, and reduce product costs and changes. Co-founded in 2017 by CEO Adam Keating and CTO Jeremy Andrews, the company is based in St John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. Its tool is used by Fortune 500 customers including Johnson Controls and Hyundai Mobis. CoLab raised $17M in a Series A round led by Insight Partners and plans to use the funds to accelerate the pace of engineering innovation and reinvent how teams collaborate on mechanical design. Josh Fredberg, Managing Director at Insight Partners, joined CoLab's board in conjunction with the financing.