What 3M New Ventures does

3M Company, parent of 3M New Ventures, is a diversified industrial technology enterprise incorporated in Delaware and headquartered in St. Paul, Minnesota, with a stated history dating to 1902 and a public listing on the New York Stock Exchange under ticker MMM. The company operates a portfolio of physical-product platforms spanning abrasives, adhesives and sealants, advanced materials (including ceramics, microspheres, and nanotechnology), tapes (Scotch® brand), packaging equipment (3M-Matic™ case sealers, AccuGlide™ tape heads), personal protective equipment, films and sheeting, filtration and separation, coatings, electrical materials, flexographic printing solutions, and medical products, organized across at least ten industry verticals including automotive, commercial solutions, consumer, design and construction, electronics, energy, government, manufacturing, safety, and transportation.

The business model is a horizontal industrial conglomerate model: revenue is generated through the sale of physical branded products and integrated systems (such as the RC Plus+ Sealing System combining Scotch® Plus+ tapes, AccuGlide tape heads, and 3M-Matic case sealers) rather than through software subscriptions. Go-to-market is multi-channel, combining enterprise field sales for large industrial and government customers, an owned e-commerce storefront for direct SMB and consumer purchases, and a global network of authorized distributors and resellers. Sub-brands (Scotch, Scotch-Brite, Post-it, 3M-Matic, 3M Abrasives) and 100+ years of accumulated materials science expertise function as the principal competitive differentiators, with R&D leadership vested in an Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer.

3M New Ventures specifically is the corporate venture capital arm of this enterprise, established in 2006 to invest in disruptive, early-stage innovations outside the parent's internal R&D pipeline. As a venture vehicle within a publicly traded conglomerate, 3M New Ventures' strategic intent is structured external innovation sourcing and minority equity exposure to emerging technologies relevant to 3M's existing vertical platforms. The entity itself is part of a 10,000+ employee global organization with no independent disclosed financials in the provided source data.

Name

3M New Ventures

Legal name

3M Company

Website

https://www.3m.com/3M/en_US/company-us/about-3m/3m-ventures/

Company type

Public

Founded year

2006

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

5,001–10,000 employees

Short description

3M Company is a publicly traded, diversified industrial technology conglomerate (NYSE: MMM) headquartered in St. Paul, Minnesota, serving automotive, electronics, healthcare, consumer, safety, energy, and government customers worldwide. 3M New Ventures, founded in 2006, is its corporate venture capital arm investing in early-stage innovations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Diversified Industrial Manufacturing

NAICS

Securities, Commodity Contracts, and Other Financial Investments and Related Activities (523), Other Financial Vehicles (52599), Manufacturing (31-33)

SIC

Special Industry Machinery (No Metalworking Machinery) (3550), Plastic Material, Synth Resin/Rubber, Cellulos (No Glass) (2820)

akta.pro primary industry

Corporate Innovation & Technology Scouting Units (with investment mandate) (FSANAHAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Corporate Strategic Partnership & Ecosystem Investment Arms (FSANAHAF), Sector-Focused Venture Capital (Vertical Specialists) (FSANAAAD)

Keywords

• Industrial adhesives
• Personal protective equipment
• Abrasives manufacturing
• Filtration technology
• Advanced materials

Headquarters

HQ city

Saint Paul

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

3M New Ventures operates as the corporate venture capital arm of 3M Company, established in 2006 to invest in disruptive early-stage innovations. The parent entity markets a diversified industrial technology portfolio including abrasives, adhesives and sealants, advanced materials, packaging tapes and automated case-sealing equipment, personal protective equipment, filtration media, specialty films, electrical materials, coatings, and medical products, serving automotive, electronics, manufacturing, healthcare, safety, government, energy, and consumer markets.

Product overview

3M is a diversified industrial technology company offering a broad portfolio of products organized into product categories spanning Materials, Manufacturing, Safety, Electronics, Healthcare, and Consumer markets. The company operates on a platform-plus-categories model rather than a unified software product, with distinct product lines including: Abrasives, Adhesives, Advanced Materials, Personal Protective Equipment, Packaging Solutions (featuring Scotch® brand tapes, 3M-Matic™ case sealers, and AccuGlide™ tape heads), Flexographic Printing Solutions, Films & Sheeting, Filtration & Separation, Coatings, Tapes, Electrical Materials, and Medical Products. These products serve industries including Automotive, Commercial Solutions, Consumer, Design & Construction, Electronics, Energy, Government, Manufacturing, Safety, and Transportation. Rather than a software platform, 3M's offering consists of physical products with associated technical expertise and application support.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Scotch: Brand for packaging tapes and adhesives including Scotch Box Sealing Tape and Scotch Plus+ Tapes
• Scotch-Brite
• Post-it
• 3M-Matic
• 3M Abrasives

Products and services

• Abrasives

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Qualcomm Ventures: Qualcomm Ventures is the CVC arm of Qualcomm, investing broadly across 5G, AI, automotive, IoT, and adjacent technologies. It is a broad incumbent comparable to 3M New Ventures in CVC structure, with overlapping exposure to electronics and automotive end markets.
• Intel Capital: Intel Capital is one of the largest and most established corporate venture capital arms globally, investing across a broad portfolio of technology themes. It is a broad incumbent comparable to 3M New Ventures in CVC structure, but with a much larger, technology-focused mandate.
• Samsung Ventures: Samsung Ventures is the CVC arm of Samsung Group, a diversified global conglomerate. It is a broad incumbent comparable to 3M New Ventures as a diversified-conglomerate CVC with multi-vertical investment scope and substantial capital deployment.
• M12 (Microsoft's Venture Fund): M12 is the CVC arm of Microsoft, investing in early-stage enterprise software and frontier technologies. It is a broad incumbent comparable to 3M New Ventures as an established corporate strategic venture investor, though M12 is more software/cloud focused.

Direct peers

• Honeywell Ventures: Honeywell Ventures is the CVC arm of Honeywell, a diversified industrial conglomerate with similar breadth across aerospace, automation, and specialty materials. It is directly comparable to 3M New Ventures as a corporate strategic investor deploying capital against industrial and emerging technology themes.
• Procter & Gamble Ventures: P&G Ventures is the CVC/external venturing function of Procter & Gamble, a global consumer goods conglomerate. It is directly comparable to 3M New Ventures as a CVC attached to a diversified industrial/consumer conglomerate investing in disruptive innovations adjacent to the parent's core markets.
• DuPont Ventures: DuPont's corporate venture activities invest in advanced materials, electronics, and industrial biotechnology. It is directly comparable to 3M New Ventures as a corporate venture function at a diversified materials/industrial conglomerate with overlapping verticals.
• BASF Venture Capital: BASF Venture Capital is the CVC arm of BASF, a global chemical and materials conglomerate. It is directly comparable to 3M New Ventures as a corporate venture investor focused on disruptive innovations in chemistry, materials, and industrial applications, leveraging the parent's deep applied science capabilities.
• Bosch Ventures: Bosch Ventures (formerly Robert Bosch Venture Capital) is the CVC arm of Bosch, a global industrial and technology conglomerate. It is directly comparable to 3M New Ventures as a strategic investor targeting early-stage disruptions in industrial, mobility, and deep-tech adjacencies to the parent's core business.
• Johnson & Johnson Innovation (JJDC): Johnson & Johnson Innovation / JJDC is the long-standing CVC arm of J&J, investing across healthcare, consumer health, and medical devices. It is directly comparable to 3M New Ventures as a corporate strategic venture function with multi-decade operating history and a healthcare/consumer-adjacent thesis.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments42 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about 3M New Ventures