AM Investment Strategies Profile: AM Ventures

AM Ventures managing partner Arno Held will participate in the SmarTech – Stifel AM Investment Strategies 2021 summit on September 9, 2021. Held will speak at one of the two online panels along with other leaders of the 3D printing world and discuss the investment environment and competitive landscape for the industry worldwide. Held will bring his know-how of strategic investments in additive manufacturing (AM) startups and how to spot potential disruptive 3D printing technologies.

Focused on leveraging venture capital for entrepreneurs to transform the world with industrial 3D printing, the German investment company is the venture capitalist arm of the Langer Group. Led by Dr. Hans Langer, founding partner and developer of EOS Gmbh’s industrial AM technology, the Langer Group, is a major shareholder of AM Ventures and one of the pioneers of the 3D printing industry.

Set up in 2015, AM Ventures is considered the leading venture capital firm in industrial 3D printing. In a short time, it has amassed an extensive portfolio of companies in six countries, funded throughout more than two dozen rounds. From Europe to Australia and the United States, the businesses range from hardware to software, materials, and applications in industrial 3D printing.

Dr. Hans Langer founder of EOS Gmbh. Image courtesy of EOS.

The first AM Ventures investment was in DyeMansion, a pioneering startup focused on post-processing technology for 3D printed parts. Based out of Munich, the company founders took their first steps in a small cellar in 2013, where they 3D printed smartphone covers. Since then, it has turned into a global leader in AM finishing systems that transform 3D printed raw parts into high-value products.

In 2015, the company received a seed round worth $800,000, followed by a Series A round led by AM Ventures three years later that raised $5 million. At the time, Held described how AM Ventures had been supporting DyeMansion from the early beginning as a seed investor and witnessed the team grow successfully into “a mature, professional and still one-of-a-kind company.”

DyeMansion expands its Powershot product portfolio. Image courtesy of DyeMansion

But DyeMansion is just one of the 15 companies curated by the AM Ventures’ expert team. For example, Berlin-based 3YOURMIND, a 3D printing software company launched in 2014, is also part of the venture firm’s portfolio. It is now considered a leading software provider for managing and optimizing end-to-end production workflows that enable distributed manufacturing around the globe. Since 2015, AM Ventures has been one of the leading investors in at least two of the business’s five funding rounds, helping 3YOURMIND raise over $13.5 million in just two years.

Other companies that joined the AM Ventures family include LightForce Orthodontics, a Massachusetts developer of customized 3D printed orthodontic bracket systems designed to deliver patient-specific digital dental treatment. This maker of 3D-printed braces recently closed a $14 million Series B round with follow-on investment from AM Ventures and even hired Amazon executive Kelly Riedel as Chief Operating Officer (COO).

Companies that are part of the AM Ventures portfolio. Image courtesy of AM Ventures.

Additionally, AM Ventures holds a stake in advanced 3D printing materials company Elementum, from Colorado; high-performance polymer developer for industrial AM Cubicure from Austria; Conflux Technology, a pioneering Australian company specializing in the use of metal AM for heat exchange applications; and Swiss startup Sintratec, a developer of entry-level selective laser sintering (SLS) systems for the mass market, among other early-stage 3D printing enterprises.

One of the latest companies to join AM Ventures is Additive Drives. According to the startup, the Dresden, Germany-based team makes highly efficient 3D printed windings for electric motors that are expected to “revolutionize electromobility.” Their focus is on copper windings, the main component of every electric motor. An up-and-coming industry, electric motors could be highly disrupted by additive manufacturing. In fact, Held affirmed that “additive manufacturing is becoming more mature and is increasingly opening up applications that are revolutionizing entire industries. Additive Drives is a perfect example of this.”

Continuing its mission to support entrepreneurs in 3D printing, AM Ventures announced the initial closing of the first-ever venture capital fund dedicated to industrial 3D printing in March 2021. For the $100 million deal, the firm and major shareholders, the Langer Group, joined forces with asset management pioneer KGAL.

The fund will continue to focus on further strengthening the support for seed and early growth stage hardware, software, materials, and applications startups in industrial 3D printing worldwide and represents a strong signal for the AM industry as well as investors interested in the strong dynamic of advanced manufacturing. With a fund dedicated entirely to early-stage 3D printing startups, AM Ventures will significantly contribute to the rapid adoption and growth of AM.

You can register for the free SmarTech – Stifel AM Investment Strategies 2021 summit on September 9, 2021 here.