Apps & Consumer
CloudNC raises $20M extension to automate CNC machining decisions
U.K.-based manufacturing software startup CloudNC has raised a $20 million Series B extension, bringing its lifetime funding to $128 million, four years after its last major round.
CloudNC, a U.K.-based manufacturing software startup, announced a $20 million Series B extension round on Wednesday, bringing its lifetime total raised to $128 million. Co-founder and CEO Theo Saville told TechCrunch the company’s last major raise was four years ago.
Saville launched CloudNC in 2015 with Chris Emery, now the company’s chief science officer, building AI-powered CAM Assist software that automates parts of computer numerical control (CNC) machining — the process of using computer-controlled machines to precisely cut or shape parts used in automotive, defense, and consumer-hardware industries. Before a part can be cut, a machinist or programmer must decide how it should be held and which tools to use; while traditional CAM software helps create part features or recognize known patterns, Saville said it doesn’t generate the kind of execution strategy an expert would actually choose. CAM Assist plugs into systems like Autodesk Fusion or Mastercam to select suitable tools, approach directions, and cutting feeds and speeds, then drafts the code that tells the CNC machine what to do — with the user reviewing, editing, and approving the results. “CAM Assist is more like an expert assistant sitting alongside the programmer, automating much of the first-pass thinking and repetitive setup so the human can review, improve, and approve the approach,” Saville said.
Saville said more than 1,000 machine shops worldwide use CAM Assist, with 80% of the company’s customer base in the U.S., across a team of 80 employees. Investors in the round include Nimble Ventures, which led it, along with Calculus Venture Capital, Entrepreneurs First, and LM Capital, Lockheed Martin’s venture arm. The funding will support wider adoption of CAM Assist, strengthen go-to-market operations, expand into existing and new markets, and develop new products including Quote Agent, set to launch next month, which helps manufacturers estimate the cost and risk of a new project so they can decide faster whether to accept it — a response, Saville said, to U.S. shops trying to reshore production even as the industry faces a shortage of skilled workers.
Why it matters
CloudNC’s bet is that automating the judgment calls machinists make before cutting even starts — not just the cutting itself — is what lets shops absorb more work without proportionally more skilled staff.