A factory scale robot…

Since we started CircuitHub in 2012 a lot has changed. The business model has been through a few iterations, the team got older and started families, and we’ve shipped a lot of assembled boards. But the mission to massively accelerate the pace of electronics innovation has been constant.

We launched by giving engineers the ability to upload their EDA files, get a quote in minutes, pay by credit card, and we’d broker the work to a small set of vendors. That was novel at the time, and the flurry of orders on day one validated the year of work we’d put in.

But we quickly learnt the online experience wasn’t the only thing. What people really wanted was a better manufacturing process. Faster, cheaper, higher quality, wider envelope. So began the long journey down the rabbit hole of electronics manufacturing.

Today we operate what I believe is the world’s most advanced PCBA factory. Our Grid system is a factory-scale robot that looks more like a semiconductor fab than a contract manufacturer. As a matter of routine we ship 1-off prototype PCBAs in 2 to 3 days without charging white-glove prices. 2M+ boards shipped, 133M+ parts placed, 20,000 engineers served so far. In time, prototyping electronics should look a lot more like 3D printing, and we’ll keep driving lead times and prices down until it does.

It’s a little known fact that we’ve quietly raised about $20M over the years, mostly from super angels in the industry. Building factory-scale robots requires significant upfront capital. But we’ve been growing fast and operating profitably for a while. So why raise now?

Designed in the US, assembled in China stopped working. The US has lost 85%+ of its share of the global PCB market. What’s left is a handful of expensive quick-turn shops, ~1,300 sleepy Tier 2/3s mostly serving defense, and Tier 1s with their capacity overseas. 90% of high-mix US EMS Assembly COGS is labor, which is why the economics have never worked. The Grid sidesteps that entirely: fully automated, teleoperated 24/7 by a remote team, with AI doing more of the work every quarter.

So today we’re announcing 28M (48M raised to date) led by @pluralplatform and @seikatsu to 10x capacity through 2027 in both our existing Massachusetts factory and expand into Europe. Sten and Plural were making SciFi bets back when most VCs were still doing SaaS. He’s going to help us take what’s working in the US to the other side of the Atlantic. Given our existing R&D offices in London and Cambridge (UK), it’s less of a leap than it sounds.

The longer-term picture is that the Grid becomes a self-contained supply chain. A computer-on-module supplier building on the Grid, shipping directly to a robot company also building on the Grid. The Pearl River Delta, shrunk down to factory scale.

If this sounds like a fun mission, come and help out -> https://jobs.ashbyhq.com/circuithub