Aon3D Secures $11.5M Series A Funding & Lunar Partnership

The Expanding Potential of 3D Printing

3D printing technology has generated considerable excitement, and rightfully so. It enables the creation of objects with novel shapes and designs, often utilizing materials that are significantly lighter than those used in conventional manufacturing.

However, significant obstacles hinder adoption for many businesses. These include a lack of expertise in additive manufacturing processes or the need for materials incompatible with standard 3D printers.

AON3D: Breaking Down Barriers

Startup AON3D aims to address these challenges by enhancing automation and expanding the range of 3D-printable materials. The company recently secured $11.5 million in Series A funding to further this mission.

AON3D specializes in manufacturing industrial 3D printers designed for thermoplastics. A key differentiator is the platform’s material versatility, as explained by co-founder Kevin Han. The printers can process over 70,000 commercially available thermoplastic composites, or even custom material formulations.

Material Agnostic Innovation

According to its founders, AON3D’s core innovation lies in its ability to adapt existing, 3D-printing-ready materials already utilized by clients. This capability represents a substantial advancement in the field.

“The primary innovation extends beyond hardware costs and centers on materials,” co-founder Randeep Singh stated in a recent TechCrunch interview. “We can integrate a new material from a large corporation, analyze it, and develop a 3D-printable process tailored to that material.”

This approach broadens access to additive manufacturing for companies hesitant to alter their existing materials to accommodate 3D printing. AON3D’s process eliminates the need for such fundamental changes, as Han clarified.

From Service Bureau to Manufacturing

The company was established by Han, Singh, and Andrew Walker, who connected while pursuing materials engineering at McGill University in Montreal. They identified a market gap between expensive, high-end 3D printers—costing hundreds of thousands of dollars—and affordable, consumer-level printers priced in the hundreds.

Initially, they offered 3D printing services before launching a Kickstarter campaign in 2015. This campaign successfully raised CAN $89,643 (US $71,064) to fund the development of their first 3D printer, the AON. To date, they have secured a total of $14.2 million in funding.

The latest funding round was spearheaded by SineWave Ventures, with contributions from AlleyCorp and Y Combinator Continuity. Additional investors included BDC, EDC, Panache Ventures, MANA Ventures, Josh Richards & Griffin Johnson, and SV angels.

Comprehensive Support and Applications

Beyond printer and material sales, AON3D provides ongoing training in additive manufacturing. This ensures clients optimize printer settings for their desired parts.

The company has gained traction in the aerospace sector, driven by the benefits of lightweight components—critical for space applications where payload capacity is paramount—along with reduced costs, faster turnaround times, and the ability to create complex geometries unattainable through traditional methods like injection molding.

Lunar Exploration with Astrobotic

AON3D is collaborating with Astrobotic Technology, a lunar exploration startup planning to launch a lander to the moon via a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket in 2022. The mission will carry hundreds of parts produced using AON3D’s AON M2+ high-temperature printer.

These components are poised to become the first additively manufactured parts to land on the lunar surface, including bracketry and critical avionics box components.

“This partnership allows Astrobotic to rapidly utilize the materials they require,” Singh explained. “Without it, they would face lengthy lead times to adapt materials to alternative processes.” He added that injection molding with high-performance polymers can take months, compared to just a day or two with 3D printing.

Future Outlook

AON3D intends to use the new funding to establish a dedicated, full-scale materials lab and expand its team. The company also aims to fully automate the 3D printing process, leveraging data from the materials lab to enable any business to integrate additive manufacturing into their production workflows.