Machina Labs

What Machina Labs does

Machina Labs builds and operates AI-driven robotic manufacturing systems that produce complex metal structures without the dedicated dies or molds used in conventional sheet metal forming. The company's core process, RoboForming, is a dieless incremental sheet forming technique executed by dual seven-axis robotic arms on linear rails, guided by CAD-derived digital toolpaths and corrected in real time using force, torque, and displacement sensors with laser-profilometer quality scans. The RoboCraftsman platform integrates forming, scanning, trimming, drilling, heat treatment, and assembly inside a single containerized cell, with an on-cell thermal stress-relief capability that allows post-forming heat treatment without moving the part. A portable Deployable System variant is housed in two ISO shipping containers and can be operational at a customer site within hours, including forward-operating bases and aircraft carriers.

Machina generates revenue through three channels: selling or leasing RoboCraftsman platforms (the U.S. Air Force has purchased at least two units), operating its own factories as a manufacturing services provider under an "Airframes-as-a-Service" model, and delivering custom automotive panel production for OEMs such as Toyota. The company is currently building Machina Factory 3, a 200,000-square-foot intelligent factory in the U.S. designed to house up to 50 RoboCraftsman cells and produce thousands of complex structural assemblies annually. Customers include the U.S. Air Force (Rapid Sustainment Office, AFRL, Warner Robins ALC, AFWERX), NASA, Lockheed Martin, Toyota Motor North America, and the University of Dayton Research Institute, with active programs in airframes, missiles/hypersonics, automotive customization, and emerging naval and energy applications.

Founded in 2019 by aerospace and automotive veterans Edward Mehr and Babak Raeisinia, Machina Labs is a privately held California corporation headquartered in Chatsworth. The company has raised over $160M across Series A (Jan 2023, Lockheed Martin Ventures), Series B (Oct 2023, NVentures and Innovation Endeavors), and Series C (Feb 2026, Woven Capital, Lockheed Martin Ventures, Balerion Space Ventures, and Strategic Development Fund). It is ITAR registered and CMMC Level 2 certified, qualifying it for sensitive DoD programs. Strategic investors include Woven Capital (Toyota), Lockheed Martin Ventures, and the UAE's Strategic Development Fund, each paired with operational partnerships in their respective sectors.

Name

Machina Labs

Legal name

Machina Labs, Inc.

Website

https://machinalabs.ai

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Machina Labs develops AI-guided robotic manufacturing systems that produce complex metal structures without dies or molds. It sells its RoboCraftsman platform and manufacturing services to aerospace, defense, and automotive customers including the U.S. Air Force, Lockheed Martin, NASA, and Toyota.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Robotic Metal Forming Manufacturing

NAICS

Machine Tool Manufacturing (333517), Metalworking Machinery Manufacturing (33351)

SIC

Metalworkg Machinery & Equipment (3540), Machine Tools, Metal Cutting Types (3541)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYHDAAAIAA

Industrial & Warehouse Robotics

Hardware, Technology & Telecom/Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning/Robotics & Autonomous Systems

SECONDARYIMAHAHAA

Industrial Robots (Articulated, SCARA, Delta, Cartesian)

Industrials, Manufacturing & Construction/Industrial Machinery & Heavy Equipment/Industrial Automation & Robotics Equipment

SECONDARYIMAGABAG

Motion & Machine Control (CNC, Robotics Controllers, Servo/Motion Controllers)

Industrials, Manufacturing & Construction/Electrical Equipment & Industrial Electronics/Industrial Automation & Control Systems (PLCs, SCADA, DCS)

Keywords

• Robotic metal forming
• Dieless sheet forming
• AI-driven manufacturing
• Software-defined factories
• Airframes-as-a-service

Headquarters

HQ city

Los Angeles

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Manufacturing Services (Airframes-as-a-Service): Machina operates its intelligent factories to produce metal structures for customers on a project/program basis. Factories execute the full manufacturing process from design intent to production-grade metal structures. Revenue is generated through direct manufacturing contracts with defense programs, aerospace primes, and automotive OEMs.
2. RoboCraftsman Platform Sale/Lease: The RoboCraftsman platform is sold or leased to customers (e.g., U.S. Air Force purchased second RoboCraftsman). The deployable system is commercially available as an on-premise manufacturing solution. Platform includes the robotic cell, AI-driven process controls, and the software stack.
3. Custom Automotive Panel Manufacturing: Partnership-based manufacturing for automotive OEMs — customizing production-grade body panels without tooling for Toyota and other automotive programs. Pilot programs with Toyota Motor North America for customized production panels. Revenue from OEM contracts for low-volume, high-variation automotive manufacturing.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Machina Labs builds and operates intelligent, software-defined factories that use AI-guided robotics to execute the full metal manufacturing process — forming, scanning, trimming, drilling, heat treatment, welding, and assembly — within a single robotic cell. Its core technology, RoboForming, is a proprietary dieless robotic incremental sheet metal forming process that shapes metal layer-by-layer from CAD files using dual robotic arms, eliminating the need for dedicated dies or molds. The company sells and leases its RoboCraftsman platform and Deployable System to defense, aerospace, and automotive customers, and provides Airframes-as-a-Service manufacturing through its own factories.

Product overview

Machina Labs offers an integrated portfolio of AI-powered robotic manufacturing solutions centered on the RoboCraftsman platform and its proprietary RoboForming technology. The RoboCraftsman platform serves as the core manufacturing system, integrating multiple operations (forming, scanning, trimming, drilling, heat treatment, and assembly) within a single robotic cell to produce complex metal structures without traditional dies or molds. The Deployable System provides a portable, containerized version of this platform for on-premise manufacturing at remote or field locations. The Anvil sub-brand demonstrates automotive panel customization capabilities for OEM partnerships. The company is scaling toward large-scale Intelligent Factories housing up to 50 RoboCraftsman cells for full-rate production. All offerings are driven by AI-guided robotics and software-defined manufacturing processes.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• RoboCraftsman: AI-driven robotic manufacturing platform for sheet metal forming that enables complex metal structures without dies or molds
• RoboForming
• Anvil

Products and services

• RoboCraftsman Platform AI-driven robotic manufacturing platform that integrates sheet metal forming, scanning, trimming, drilling, heat treatment, and assembly inside a single containerized robotic cell using dual 7-axis robotic arms on linear rails. Targets aerospace, defense, and automotive manufacturers needing to produce complex metal structures without dedicated dies.
• RoboForming Technology Proprietary dieless robotic incremental sheet metal forming process that shapes metal layer-by-layer following digitally programmed toolpaths derived from CAD models. Achieves over 10x reduction in lead time and tooling cost savings exceeding $1M per unique part design.
• Deployable System Portable, commercially available version of the RoboCraftsman platform packaged in two ISO-standard shipping containers. Can be transported on a truck and operational within hours at new locations without significant site preparation; works with any industrial robot. Targets military depots, forward-operating bases, and other on-premise manufacturing environments.
• Anvil Automotive panel customization platform that demonstrates RoboCraftsman capabilities for OEMs and custom builders. Enables rapid customization of stamped and body panels without dedicated tooling, targeting mass customization at scale.
• Intelligent Factory Large-scale manufacturing facility model under development by Machina Labs to house up to 50 RoboCraftsman cells, producing thousands of complex structural assemblies annually for defense and aerospace customers.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 10X reduction in lead time vs. traditional die-based forming
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability7 records

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered major, minor and flagship/primary.

• nTopmajorTechnology or Integration · 23 April 2026Joint workflow demonstration: nTop's parametric computational design platform integrates with Machina's RoboCraftsman factory. Enables engineers to encode structural requirements and manufacturing constraints directly into the model — geometry regenerates automatically when parameters change. Demonstrated Class 3 UAV airframe with 11 structural variants and 15 CFD cases before committing geometry to metal. Full-scale flight demonstrator in development with RCTestFlight.
• Southern Pacific Aerospace & Defense Alliance (SPADA)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 19 December 2025SPADA partnered with Machina Labs for a live defense manufacturing showcase event at the Machina factory in Chatsworth, CA on May 20, 2026. The event brings together engineers, program leaders, manufacturers, and policymakers for a working session inside an active production environment.
• Toyota Motor North Americaflagship/primaryStrategic or Co-development Partner · 30 September 2025Pilot program applying Machina's RoboForming technology to customize production Toyota Tacoma tailgate at UP.Summit 2025. Goal of bringing automotive-grade quality and throughput to low-volume manufacturing. Toyota General Manager Zach Choate: 'The ability to deliver a bespoke product into the hands of our customers is the type of innovation we are excited about.' Partnership includes Woven Capital strategic investment.
• Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) / ARM Instituteflagship/primaryStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 September 2025Multiyear AFRL contract in partnership with the Advanced Robotics for Manufacturing (ARM) Institute (DoD Manufacturing Innovation Institute). Program will enhance RoboCraftsman with advanced AI/ML capabilities to automate tool path generation for airframe skins and panels. Addresses DoD sustainment modernization needs and aims to reduce MICAP ratios.
• U.S. Air Force Rapid Sustainment Office (RSO)flagship/primaryStrategic or Co-development Partner · 7 April 2025USAF RSO purchased second RoboCraftsman platform. Multiyear contract integrates Machina Labs' portable, AI-driven manufacturing solution into the Air Force's sustainment strategy. Platform deployed to University of Dayton Research Institute (UDRI) to train, identify and qualify replacement parts for multiple aircraft. Total defense contract awards to date exceed $14M.
• University of Dayton Research Institute (UDRI)majorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 7 April 2025RoboCraftsman deployed to UDRI's Integrated Technology Operations Center (ITOC) — joint workspace with Air Force RSO. UDRI works alongside Machina Labs and USAF RSO to qualify parts and refine RoboForming process for defense applications. UDRI is a leading research organization specializing in aircraft repair and sustainment. U.S. Ambassador to NATO visited UDRI to see RoboCraftsman in May 2025.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Bright Machines: Bright Machines provides AI-driven robotic factory automation and software-defined assembly cells for manufacturers. Directly comparable as a software-defined robotics platform bringing programmability and data capture to discrete manufacturing, though focused on assembly rather than metal forming.
• Velo3D: Velo3D manufactures metal additive manufacturing systems for aerospace and defense customers seeking complex, low-volume parts. Both companies compete for the same defense/aerospace metal parts wallet with alternative-to-traditional-stamping value propositions, although Velo3D uses powder-bed fusion rather than incremental forming.
• Hadrian Industries: Hadrian operates AI-driven robotic precision machining factories for aerospace and defense components. Both companies target the same defense sustainment and primes customer base with software-defined, high-mix metal part production — Hadrian via milling, Machina via RoboForming — making them the closest directly comparable peer.

Emerging players

• VulcanForms: VulcanForms builds fully digital, high-volume metal additive manufacturing systems for aerospace, defense, and medical customers. Comparable as a software-controlled metal manufacturing platform pursuing similar economics through digital toolpath control rather than physical tooling.
• Seurat Technologies: Seurat is developing area-printing additive manufacturing aimed at high-volume metal parts, with backing from investors including NVentures (the same NVIDIA-affiliated fund invested in Machina Labs). Comparable as a competing software-defined metal manufacturing approach for aerospace/defense.
• Fabric8Labs: Fabric8Labs uses electrochemical additive manufacturing to produce metal parts at room temperature without tooling, pursuing aerospace, defense, and semiconductor customers. Comparable as an emerging tooling-free metal manufacturing approach targeting overlapping aerospace/defense applications.

Broad incumbents

• Desktop Metal: Desktop Metal is a publicly traded metal additive manufacturing platform with binder jetting and other AM technologies targeting industrial and defense customers. Comparable as a well-capitalized competitor pursuing tooling-free, software-defined metal part production for similar end markets.
• Carbon (Carbon3D): Carbon operates digital manufacturing platforms using proprietary polymer and resin processes for production parts. Comparable as a digital, software-defined manufacturing-as-a-service company referenced in Machina Labs' team pedigree (Carbon3D alumni).

Others

• nTop: nTop provides computational design software that integrates directly with Machina Labs' RoboCraftsman platform. They are explicit technology partners (joint UAV airframe workflow demonstrated), and comparable as an enabling software layer in the modern metal manufacturing stack.
• Anduril Industries: Anduril is a venture-backed defense technology prime building software-defined autonomous systems with similar investor overlap (Innovation Endeavors, Lockheed Martin Ventures). Comparable as a high-growth, well-capitalized defense technology peer that frames expectations for valuation and exit dynamics in Machina Labs' ecosystem.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/machina-labs

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Machina Labs