Massachusetts-based 3D printing company Formlabs is the latest tech startup to join the unicorn crowd, with the news it has raised $15 million. The injection is the Greater Boston-based firm’s sixth since it was founded as a Kickstarter project in 2012, and brings total funding to $103.7m. More attention-grabbingly, the round places Formlabs’ valuation at over a billion dollars, placing it among technology industry royalty.
New Enterprise Associates, a Chevy Chase, Maryland-headquartered VC, led today’s funding, which bolsters a $30m round won by Formlabs just three months ago. Former GE CEO Jeff Immelt will join Formlabs’ board of directors as part of the deal, writing in a statement that he was “excited to work with Formlabs at this pivotal time in the company’s development.”
Formlabs has managed to outlast the 3D printing bubble burst by offering industrial-quality printers in desktop form. Its products have caught on with professionals working out of studios and smaller-scale offices, among other clients.
Today’s unicorn valuation is a huge boost to its founding team, all MIT graduates – especially at a time when 3D printing has made headlines for dubious reasons. A media frenzy has been whipped up by fears of 3D-printed firearms, that have elicited a pledge by US President Donald Trump to examine their production.