Based in Canberra Manufacturing startup Syenta has raised $3.7 million in seed funding to develop ultra-fast, multi-material 3D printers.
The round was guided. blackbird, with Brindabella Capital and Jelix Ventures.
The ANU-based startup has spent two years in “stealth mode” developing a multi-material 3D printer using electrochemistry with collaborators Yekaterina Viktorova and Professor Luke Connell.
The money will accelerate technical development and make more printers available to early customers. The team also employs product managers and software engineers who specialize in embedded systems.
“I’m happy to work on a method that allows for true multi-material printing that involves fewer steps and less waste,” says Viktorova.
“Our additive manufacturing approach is a key enabler of innovation in the electronics sector.”
The idea for Syenta came from a late-night email exchange between a couple that described a new way of 3D printing. Users can print small electronic devices such as sensors and photovoltaics with it.
“In the two years since Luke’s first email, we’ve made incredible progress on our vision for Syenta – but we’re just getting started,” says Viktorova.
We can’t wait to bring this new way of manufacturing to the world, starting in Australia.
Professor Connell said Syenta is ushering in a new era of micro-fabrication and nano-fabrication of electronics from a box that fits on a coffee table.
“We were trying to solve some fundamental problems of printing metals and plastics at the same time. The day after the first email, we had proof that we were on to something. From the very beginning, we were convinced that this could be the foundation of an impactful company.”
“Syenta is democratizing the electronics manufacturing industry by empowering its customers to rapidly design and build electronics anywhere in the world. Using the Syenta printer, customers can quickly manufacture and iterate at home, building more electronics like sensors, photovoltaics, batteries, PCBs, antennas and more electronics that have yet to be imagined.” Manufacturing enabled.
“This is a new manufacturing method. It means we can build electronics faster, cheaper and with less labor. These mobile factories can be on our customers’ benchtops, eliminating dependence on electronics supply chains.”
Paul Mooney of Great Cell Energy, an early customer, says the printer will improve the cost and performance of renewable energy.
“Syenta has helped pave the way for us to jump over the hurdle to deliver high-quality, better-performing and lower-cost, large-scale Australian-made perovskite solar cells,” he said.
“We are excited that they will use their products and technical expertise in our future regular collaboration projects to keep us ahead of the curve in perovskite technology and product development.”
Blackbird founder Niki Scevak says that while the way we make electronics has evolved over the decades, innovative solutions are few and far between.
“Cynta’s new electronic manufacturing method has the potential to transform the electronics manufacturing market and relieve the burden on supply chains,” he said.
We live for founders like Jeka and Luke, and are happy to invest in their journey.
