M
Makerbot
Connected 3D Printing Solutions | MakerBot
About Makerbot
MakerBot, now a sub-brand of UltiMaker, operates as a specialized provider of 3D printing solutions tailored exclusively for the kindergarten through secondary school education market. The company was originally founded in January 2009 by Bre Pettis, Adam Mayer, and Zach "Hoeken" Smith, emerging from the open-source RepRap Project with the goal of making 3D printing accessible. The founders' journey began with a shared passion for tinkering and making technology available to a wider audience; Pettis was a former art teacher, and Smith was a founding member of the RepRap Research Foundation. Their initial products were sold as do-it-yourself kits, allowing enthusiasts to build their own machines.
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A significant milestone occurred in June 2013 when Stratasys, a leader in polymer 3D printing, acquired MakerBot for $403 million, which helped the company scale its operations. This was followed by a merger with competitor Ultimaker in 2022, creating the new entity UltiMaker. This strategic consolidation aimed to accelerate the global adoption of additive manufacturing by combining the strengths of both companies, with the MakerBot brand being repositioned to focus entirely on educational applications.
The company's business model centers on creating a complete educational ecosystem. Revenue is generated from the sale of hardware, materials, and a suite of supporting services. This includes the MakerBot SKETCH series of 3D printers, which are designed to be safe and easy to use in a classroom setting. The printers are complemented by MakerBot CloudPrint, a cloud-based software that allows educators to manage print jobs, monitor printers remotely, and handle student projects without requiring individual student accounts. Beyond hardware, MakerBot provides a comprehensive learning platform that includes ISTE-aligned curriculum and lesson plans, project guides, and certification programs for both students and teachers, effectively lowering the barrier for educators to integrate 3D printing into their teaching. The company also maintains Thingiverse, one of the largest online communities for discovering, making, and sharing 3D printable models, which serves as a vast resource for educators.
At a glance
- Status
- Acquired
- Founded
- 2009
- Headquarters
- New York City, United States
- Employees
- 89
- Open positions
- None listed
- Dealroom signal
- 61.0/100
- Industry
- Home Living
- Sector
- eCommerce & Marketplaces, Hard Tech, DT and LS
- Technology
- 3D Technology, Deep Tech
- Business model
- Marketplace & ecommerce
- Investment activity
- 3 companies, latest May 2022
- Capital deployed
- $2.7M
- Preferred round
- SEED
Latest news
Press, funding announcements and product moves mentioning Makerbot.
Funding history
Company financing events and reported valuations.
| Deal type | Date | Amount | Valuation | Investors | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MERGER✓Other financing | May 2022 | $0 | — | Ultimaker | ↗ |
| ACQUISITION✓Exit | Jun 2013 | $0 | — | Stratasys | — |
Growth signals
Latest recorded traffic for Makerbot is 110K monthly website visits, down 26.7% over the last three months. Makerbot's team declined 11.9% over the past year.
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Investments and acquisitions
Recent portfolio relationships for companies that also act as investors or acquirers.
UltimakerAmersfoort, NetherlandsUltimaker has built an open and easy-to-use solution of 3D printers, software, and materials that enable professional designers
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OperableDurham, United StatesInteractive learning platform offering hands-on coding projects and real-time feedback for developers
$11Mvaluation
Layer by LayerMountain View, United StatesCalifornia-based 3d printing technology start-up
$500Kvaluation
Investors
From Dealroom's funding and investor records, grouped by the round each investor first entered.
Series A12 investors entered at this stage
Founder Collective
RRE Ventures
Lerer Hippeau
Bezos Expeditions
Third Kind Venture Capital
Samuel Lessin
Matt Mullenweg
Foundry
True Ventures
Thrive Capital
500 Global
Sam Lessin
Other known investors3 additional known investors
Stratasys- Ultimaker
Audrey Capital
Source: Dealroom Talent Intelligence.
Global footprint
team presence
Market sentiment
An AI-synthesised read of the highest-engagement posts about Makerbot on X, ranked by likes and reposts, corporate channels excluded.
Reading the room on X — pulling top posts and synthesizing themes…
Source: X recent search ranked by engagement (likes + retweets) · Synthesis by Claude · Cached for 1 hour
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