Carbon Raises $260 Million in New Funding

3D printer company Carbon has raised more than $260 million in a new round of funding co-led by Madrone Capital Partners and Baillie Gifford. The round also included Temasek and Arkema along with previous investors Sequoia Capital, Johnson & Johnson Innovation – JJDC, Inc. (JJDC), Fidelity Management & Research Company, Adidas Ventures, and JSR. Carbon’s total fundraising now exceeds $680 million.

“With the Carbon Platform, powered by our Digital Light Synthesis technology, companies are finally breaking free of the constraints of traditional polymer manufacturing methods to make what’s next now, and at speeds and volumes never before possible,” said Joseph DeSimone, Carbon’s CEO and Co-Founder.

Carbon plans to use the funding to expand its R&D efforts, establish its first Advanced Development Facility (ADF), and for expansion in Europe and Asia. According to the company, the ADF will enable Carbon’s engineering teams to improve its technology in scaled-up manufacturing environments.

Carbon will also use the funds to invest in its development of recyclable and biocompatible materials and to accelerate the expansion of its software capabilities, including the Digital Manufacturing Cloud platform.

“What impresses me about Carbon is their diversification across markets and industries,” said Greg Penner, founder and general partner at Madrone Capital Partners and Chairman of Walmart. “Through their partnerships with large-scale manufacturers in automotive, healthcare, and consumer goods, they are proving that, with their Digital Light Synthesis™ technology, additive manufacturing in larger scale production is becoming a reality across industry sectors. This is an inflection point for the company, and we’re proud to be able to contribute to Carbon’s future success.”

Carbon plans to use the new funding to increase R&D and expand in Asia and Europe. Image courtesy of Carbon

“Carbon has cracked the code on 3D printing at scale, as evidenced by its impressive growth in implementation and products brought to market with companies such as Adidas, Ford, Lamborghini, and Riddell,” said Jim Goetz, Partner at Sequoia Capital. “They are truly delivering on their vision to provide the world’s first fully integrated digital manufacturing platform for high-volume production, and they are well on their way to transforming the 3D printing world.”

Carbon’s customer base included Adidas (which is using Carbon’s technology to mass produce a shoe) and Ford (which is making polymer parts for the F-150 and Mustang). According to estimates from Pitchbook, Carbon could be valued at as much as $2.5 billion.

Source: Carbon