CloudNC raises $20M to automate manufacturing’s most pressing bottlenecks
UK manufacturing software company CloudNC said it raised a $20 million B extension round, taking its total funding to $128 million. The startup makes CAM Assist, an AI-driven tool that automates parts of CNC machining setup, and plans to use the new capital to expand adoption and build a new product called Quote Agent.
Why It Matters
CloudNC’s funding targets a well-known bottleneck in precision manufacturing: the time and expertise needed to program CNC machines. Backed by investors including Lockheed Martin’s venture arm, the raise aims to help shops speed quoting and programming amid reshoring trends and a shortage of skilled machinists.
Key Facts
- Amount raised in this round: $20 million (B extension)
- Total lifetime funding: $128 million
- Founders: Theo Saville (co-founder & CEO), Chris Emery (co-founder & chief science officer)
- Company founded: 2015
- Product: CAM Assist — AI-powered software for Computer Numerical Control (CNC) machining setup that integrates with CAM systems such as Autodesk Fusion and Mastercam.
CloudNC announced a $20 million B extension round on Wednesday, bringing the company’s total capital raised to $128 million. CEO and co-founder Theo Saville said the business’s last major fundraising event was four years ago, and the new injection will support wider adoption of its software, sales expansion and development of additional products.
The company builds CAM Assist, an AI-driven assistant for computer numerical control (CNC) machining. CNC machines shape or cut parts used across automotive, defense and consumer hardware sectors, but preparing a part for machining often requires a programmer or machinist to decide fixturing, tooling, cutting directions and feeds and speeds. CloudNC’s software plugs into established CAM packages like Autodesk Fusion and Mastercam to recommend tools and approaches and to draft the machine code, leaving a human user to review and refine the output.
Saville described the product as an assistant that automates first-pass thinking and repetitive setup work rather than replacing expert judgement. CloudNC reports that more than 1,000 machine shops worldwide use CAM Assist, with roughly 80% of its customer base located in the United States. The company has roughly 80 employees and identified scaling adoption as its principal near-term objective.
Investors in the extension include Nimble Ventures as lead, alongside Calculus Venture Capital, Entrepreneur First and LM Capital, the venture arm of Lockheed Martin. The funding will also back a forthcoming product called Quote Agent, which is intended to help shops estimate cost and risk on new jobs to speed quoting and decision-making — a capability CloudNC says is increasingly important as some manufacturers reshoring work while facing a shortage of skilled workers. Saville noted the company’s multi-year effort combining a factory and software team to tackle the vast number of ways a typical part can be machined, work that underpins both CAM Assist and the new Quote Agent.
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