Alibre
Alibre is a privately-held engineering software company founded in 1997 and based in Richardson, Texas, that provides affordable complete engineering solutions to cost-sensitive buyers in the CAD/engineering market, employing 501 to 1,000 people.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1997
- HeadquartersRichardson, United States
- Headcount501–1,000
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Alibre does
Alibre is a privately-held, for-profit engineering software company founded in 1997 and headquartered in Richardson, Texas. The company specializes in providing affordable complete engineering solutions, a positioning that implies a price-competitive offering in the computer-aided design and engineering software market, targeting cost-sensitive buyers underserved by premium incumbents. The firm maintains a workforce of 501 to 1,000 employees and operates from a single identified U.S. location.
The company's only documented capital event is a $16 million Series 2 funding round completed on May 16, 2000, led by Bain Capital Public Equity and Rho Management, with participation from August Capital and CenterPoint Venture Partners. No subsequent funding rounds, acquisitions, product launches, or partnerships are recorded in the available data. The company is led by CEO Max Freeman. The firmographic record indicates Alibre is a stable, mature operating entity, though detailed information on its product portfolio, technology stack, pricing, customer base, and revenue is not available in the input material — much of the source content is a placeholder or loading page rather than substantive company disclosures.
Given the 25-year operating history, mid-market headcount, and absence of recent strategic activity in the data, Alibre appears to be a privately-held, self-sustaining engineering software vendor with a value-tier go-to-market motion. The lack of disclosed product details, integration capabilities, AI/ML features, or recent strategic moves limits deeper technical and commercial characterization.
Alibre firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Alibre
- Website
- https://alibre.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1997
- Headcount range
- 501–1,000 employees
- Short description
- Alibre is a privately-held engineering software company founded in 1997 and based in Richardson, Texas, that provides affordable complete engineering solutions to cost-sensitive buyers in the CAD/engineering market, employing 501 to 1,000 people.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Alibre industry classification
Industry- Product category
- 3D CAD / Engineering Design Software
- NAICS
- Software Publishers (5132)
- SIC
- Services-Computer Programming Services (7371)
- akta.pro primary industry
- 3D Design & CAD for Additive Manufacturing (IMAAACAA)
Keywords
Where Alibre is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Richardson
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Markets served
Alibre business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations
Alibre product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Alibre provides affordable complete engineering solutions, centered on computer-aided design (CAD) and 3D modeling software used by engineers and product development teams. The company develops and licenses its own engineering design platform rather than reselling third-party CAD tools, targeting customers that need professional-grade 3D CAD capabilities at a lower price point than enterprise incumbents.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Alibre engineering design software (affordable 3D CAD) Affordable complete engineering / 3D CAD software used by engineers and small product design firms to create parametric 3D models, assemblies, and engineering documentation at a lower cost than enterprise CAD incumbents.
Companies that use Alibre
Customer profileIdeal customer profiles1 record
Alibre technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Alibre partnerships and signals
Strategic signalRecent moves3 records
Expansion highlights2 records
Alibre competitors and assessment
Company assessmentEmerging players
- FreeCAD: FreeCAD is an open-source parametric 3D CAD modeler competing at the low end of the same market Alibre targets with its 'affordable' positioning, posing a structural threat to Alibre's price-driven value proposition.
- Mastercam (CNC Software): Mastercam is a leading CAM platform often paired with third-party CAD inputs; it shares Alibre's small-machine-shop customer base and is a complementary/competing tool in CAM-driven design-to-manufacturing workflows.
Direct peers
- Dassault Systèmes (SolidWorks): SolidWorks is the market-leading parametric 3D mechanical CAD product, directly competing with Alibre Design for the same engineering customer base. Dassault Systèmes is the parent and provides the broader 3DEXPERIENCE platform.
- Bricsys (BricsCAD): Bricsys markets BricsCAD as a cost-effective DWG-compatible CAD platform with mechanical extensions, competing with Alibre on affordability and serving similar small-to-mid engineering customers.
- IronCAD: IronCAD offers 3D direct modeling and parametric hybrid CAD aimed at design engineers and manufacturers, overlapping with Alibre Design's core mechanical CAD use cases.
- Kubotek Kosmos (KeyCreator): KeyCreator by Kubotek is a direct-modeling 3D CAD system positioned for engineers transitioning from 2D drafting, putting it in the same alternative-CAD tier as Alibre.
- PTC (Creo & Onshape): PTC's Creo is a direct desktop 3D CAD competitor, and Onshape is a cloud-native CAD platform acquired by PTC — both targeting the same mechanical engineering buyers Alibre serves.
Regional players
- ZWSOFT: ZWSOFT offers ZWCAD andZW3D (mechanical CAD/CAM), primarily strong in Asia and competing with Alibre in cost-sensitive emerging markets on similar 2D/3D CAD use cases.
Broad incumbents
- Autodesk (Inventor & Fusion 360): Autodesk offers Inventor (desktop mechanical CAD) and Fusion 360 (cloud-native CAD/CAM/CAE), both overlapping Alibre's core market. As a broad incumbent with a far larger product portfolio, Autodesk competes head-on with Alibre at multiple price points.
- Siemens Digital Industries (Solid Edge & NX): Siemens offers Solid Edge (mid-market mechanical CAD) and NX (high-end CAD/CAM/CAE), overlapping Alibre in part modeling, assembly, and sheet metal workflows for manufacturers.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights5 records
Customer concentration
Alibre social profiles
Digital presenceAlibre financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Alibre leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Alibre funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors4 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Alibre 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 Alibre
What does Alibre do?
Alibre provides affordable complete engineering solutions, centered on computer-aided design (CAD) and 3D modeling software used by engineers and product development teams. The company develops and licenses its own engineering design platform rather than reselling third-party CAD tools, targeting customers that need professional-grade 3D CAD capabilities at a lower price point than enterprise incumbents.
When was Alibre founded?
Alibre was founded in 1997. It employs 501 to 1,000 people.
Where is Alibre based?
Alibre is headquartered in Richardson, United States, in the North America region.
Who are Alibre's main competitors?
Emerging players on record are FreeCAD and Mastercam (CNC Software). Direct peers are Dassault Systèmes (SolidWorks), Bricsys (BricsCAD), IronCAD, Kubotek Kosmos (KeyCreator) and PTC (Creo & Onshape). ZWSOFT is listed as a regional player. Broad incumbents are Autodesk (Inventor & Fusion 360) and Siemens Digital Industries (Solid Edge & NX).
Does Alibre have an API?
No public API is recorded for Alibre.
What industry is Alibre in?
Alibre's product category is 3D CAD / Engineering Design Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is IMAAACAA, 3D Design & CAD for Additive Manufacturing. Its NAICS code is 5132 and its SIC code is 7371.