Astropad
Astropad is a bootstrapped, profitable software and hardware company that builds proprietary low-latency tools, including the LIQUID video protocol, for the Apple ecosystem. It serves digital artists, creative professionals, education institutions, and AI developers through subscriptions, hardware sales, and freemium products.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2013
- HeadquartersMinneapolis, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingSoftware
What Astropad does
Astropad (legal entity Astro HQ LLC, Minnesota) is a bootstrapped, profitable software and hardware company founded in 2013 by ex-Apple engineers Matt Ronge and Giovanni Donelli. It builds professional tools for the Apple ecosystem, with a flagship product, Astropad Studio, that turns an iPad into a low-latency drawing tablet for Mac and PC creative software, supported by the proprietary LIQUID video protocol for sub-frame-latency streaming, multi-codec selection, and AES-256 encryption. The portfolio extends to Luna Display hardware adapters for wireless second-display use, the 2024 Astropad Slate app for iPad-as-Mac-controller, the 2025 Workbench remote-desktop application targeting AI agent workflows on headless Mac minis, and accessory products including Rock Paper Pencil and Fresh Coat screen protectors.
The company monetizes through a mix of $79/year Studio subscriptions with student and enterprise tiers, one-time hardware purchases for Luna Display ($89.99) and Slate ($19.99), a freemium Workbench tier at $10/month or $50/year, and volume licensing for education and enterprise customers. Distribution combines direct e-commerce, the Apple App Store, a 12+ country authorized reseller network, a wholesale program, and an affiliate channel. Customers include individual digital artists, professional creatives, education institutions such as Ringling College of Art and Design, and named reference users at Pixar, Disney, Nintendo, DC Comics, Lucasfilm, and Twitter, with 100,000+ customers served cumulatively across the product portfolio and no outside investment taken since founding.
Astropad firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Astropad
- Legal name
- Astro HQ LLC
- Website
- https://astropad.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2013
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Astropad is a bootstrapped, profitable software and hardware company that builds proprietary low-latency tools, including the LIQUID video protocol, for the Apple ecosystem. It serves digital artists, creative professionals, education institutions, and AI developers through subscriptions, hardware sales, and freemium products.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Astropad industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Creative Software Tools
- NAICS
- Software Publishers (513210), Computer and Peripheral Equipment Manufacturing (33411), Computer and Electronic Product Manufacturing (334)
- SIC
- Electronic Computers (3571)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Graphics Tablets, Styluses & Pen Displays (HDACAFAD)
Keywords
Where Astropad is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Minneapolis
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Astropad business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain, Operations
Revenue model
- Software Subscriptions: Annual subscription model for Astropad Studio with tiered pricing for individuals, students, and enterprises. Provides recurring revenue from drawing tablet software.
- Hardware Sales: One-time hardware purchases for Luna Display USB-C and HDMI adapters. No subscription required.
- Remote Desktop Subscriptions: Workbench remote desktop with free tier (20 min/day) and paid subscription ($10/month or $50/year) for unlimited access.
- Software License (One-time): One-time purchase for Astropad Slate app ($19.99) and Fresh Coat screen protector ($30).
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Annual | Individuals: $79/year with 14-day free trial |
| Subscription | Annual | Students: $9.99 first year, then $49.99/year |
| Subscription | Multi-year contract | Enterprise: Custom quote-based pricing |
| Subscription | Multi-year contract | Education: Custom quote-based pricing |
| Freemium | Pay-as-you-go | Workbench Free: 20 minutes/day |
| Subscription | Monthly | Workbench Unlimited: $10/month or $50/year |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Luna Display: $89.99 one-time purchase |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Astropad Slate: $19.99 one-time purchase |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels6 records
Marketing channels6 records
Astropad product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Astropad develops software and hardware products for the Apple ecosystem, including drawing tablet software that turns an iPad into a professional graphics tablet for Mac or PC, a wireless second display hardware adapter, and a remote desktop application. Its flagship product, Astropad Studio, uses a proprietary LIQUID video protocol to deliver low-latency, color-corrected, Retina-resolution streaming that lets digital artists draw on an iPad while running desktop creative software like Adobe Creative Suite, Affinity, Clip Studio Paint, and Krita. The company also sells accessories such as screen protectors and paper-feel iPad overlays, and targets creative professionals, educators, enterprises, and developers running AI workloads on Apple Silicon.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Luna Display: Wireless second display solution for Mac or iPad
- Astropad Studio
- Workbench
- Astropad Slate
- Rock Paper Pencil
- Fresh Coat
- Rock Daily Planner
Products and services
- Astropad Studio Annual subscription software that turns an iPad into a professional, pressure-sensitive drawing tablet for Mac or PC, using Astropad's proprietary LIQUID video protocol to deliver low-latency, color-corrected, Retina-resolution streaming. Designed for digital artists, illustrators, animators, and designers working in Adobe Creative Suite, Affinity, Clip Studio Paint, and Krita, with customizable shortcuts, Magic Gestures, and pressure curves.
- Luna Display One-time purchase hardware adapter (USB-C or HDMI) that turns any Mac or iPad into a wireless second display for a primary Mac or PC, delivering low-latency performance via Astropad's LIQUID technology without requiring a subscription.
- Workbench Remote desktop application exclusively for Apple devices (Mac, iPad, iPhone) that uses Astropad's LIQUID technology to provide low-latency, AES-256 encrypted remote sessions via a global relay network across 11 regions. Targeted at developers and AI enthusiasts running AI agents and local LLMs on headless Mac mini systems. Offered with a free 20 minutes/day tier and a paid Unlimited plan.
- Astropad Slate One-time purchase iPad app that turns an iPad and Apple Pencil into a pen tablet, mouse, trackpad, or handwriting input device for controlling a Mac. Provides mouse/trackpad functionality, drawing pen tablet mode, handwriting input, and touch gestures for Mac users.
- Rock Paper Pencil
Quantifiable outcome
- Latency as low as 1-4ms over wired connections (Thunderbolt, Ethernet, USB)
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Astropad
Customer profileNamed customers7 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles5 records
Astropad technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration2 records
AI capability3 records
Feature7 records
Astropad partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core, regional and flagship.
- AmazoncoreAuthorized reseller for Astropad products including Luna Display in the United States market.
- B&H Photo VideocoreAuthorized reseller for Astropad products in the United States market.
- Macfixit AustraliaregionalAuthorized reseller for Astropad products in Australia.
- GROOV (Hong Kong, New Zealand, Thailand)regionalAuthorized reseller for Astropad products across multiple Asia-Pacific markets including Hong Kong, New Zealand, and Thailand.
- Ringling College of Art and DesignflagshipEducational institution that equipped 500 freshmen with iPad Pros and Astropad Studio in 2022-2023, demonstrating product adoption in art education.
- IT-Team GmbH (Austria)regionalAuthorized reseller for Astropad products in Austria.
- Alltron AG (Switzerland)regionalAuthorized reseller for Astropad products in Switzerland.
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Astropad competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Wacom: Dominant incumbent in professional graphics tablets and pen displays (Intuos, Cintiq, One). Direct competitor to Astropad Studio, which targets the same digital artist and illustrator segment with an iPad-based, lower-cost alternative.
- XP-Pen: Drawing tablet manufacturer (Artist, Deco, Innovator lines) competing on affordability against Wacom and Astropad in the creative professional and hobbyist segments.
- Huion: Chinese drawing tablet maker offering Kamvas and Inspiroy lines across entry-level through professional tiers, competing with Astropad's iPad-based graphics tablet concept.
- Jump Desktop: Cross-platform remote desktop app with strong macOS/iOS support, Fluid protocol for low-latency streaming, and a focus on creative workflows. Direct competitor to Workbench on Apple-to-Apple remote access.
- Duet Display: Closest direct competitor to Astropad Studio and Luna Display, also turning iPad into a second display and drawing tablet for Mac and PC with paid subscription and hardware options.
Broad incumbents
- TeamViewer: Large-scale cross-platform remote desktop and remote control software used in enterprise IT. Competes with Workbench on generic remote access, though Workbench is purpose-built for Apple ecosystem and AI workflows.
- Apple Sidecar / Universal Control: First-party Apple features that turn iPad into a Mac second display or drawing surface for free across iPadOS/macOS. The most direct platform-level threat and reference point for Astropad Studio and Luna Display.
- Splashtop: Cross-platform remote desktop and remote support provider targeting business, education, and MSPs. Overlaps with Workbench on macOS-to-iPad/iPhone remote control, though less Apple-ecosystem optimized.
Emerging players
- Parsec: Low-latency remote desktop focused on creative professionals, game developers, and AI workloads running on remote machines. Competes with Workbench for AI developer remote management use cases.
- Microsoft Surface: Touchscreen and pen-enabled laptops/2-in-1s running Windows. Indirect alternative to the iPad-as-drawing-tablet concept, competing for the same mobile creative workflows.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks7 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Astropad social profiles
Digital presenceAstropad financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Astropad leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles3 records
Astropad funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Astropad M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Astropad
What does Astropad do?
Astropad develops software and hardware products for the Apple ecosystem, including drawing tablet software that turns an iPad into a professional graphics tablet for Mac or PC, a wireless second display hardware adapter, and a remote desktop application. Its flagship product, Astropad Studio, uses a proprietary LIQUID video protocol to deliver low-latency, color-corrected, Retina-resolution streaming that lets digital artists draw on an iPad while running desktop creative software like Adobe Creative Suite, Affinity, Clip Studio Paint, and Krita. The company also sells accessories such as screen protectors and paper-feel iPad overlays, and targets creative professionals, educators, enterprises, and developers running AI workloads on Apple Silicon.
Is Astropad a public or private company?
Astropad is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Astropad founded?
Astropad was founded in 2013. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Astropad based?
Astropad is headquartered in Minneapolis, United States, in the North America region.
How does Astropad make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Software Subscriptions are the primary driver. The others are hardware Sales, remote Desktop Subscriptions and software License (One-time).
Who are Astropad's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Wacom, XP-Pen, Huion, Jump Desktop and Duet Display. Broad incumbents are TeamViewer, Apple Sidecar / Universal Control and Splashtop. Emerging players are Parsec and Microsoft Surface.
Does Astropad have an API?
No public API is recorded for Astropad.
What industry is Astropad in?
Astropad's product category is Creative Software Tools. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HDACAFAD, Graphics Tablets, Styluses & Pen Displays. Its NAICS code is 513210 and its SIC code is 3571.