Stockholm-based deep-tech startup Encube has officially emerged from stealth today, announcing $23 million in funding led by Kinnevik, Promus Ventures, and Inventure.
Founded in 2021 by Hugo Nordell, a former Sandvik and Aker, and Johnny Bigert, formerly of Skype and Klarna, Encube aims to transform hardware development with its AI-driven platform.
Encube’s software supports hardware teams identify how early design decisions impact manufacturing complexity, enabling rapider time-to-market, lower production costs, and more innovative product exploration. The startup’s technology has been validated through R&D programs with Volvo Group, Beyond Gravity, and Scania, achieving up to 50% reduction in time-to-market and 20–30% lower costs.
In hardware development, as much as 80% of a product’s cost is locked in by the final design, often before manufacturing challenges are visible. Encube’s AI platform provides predictive analytics and automated design reviews directly in the browser, allowing global teams to align more quickly and avoid costly production delays.
“Hardware development is a balancing act between how a product sees, functions and what it costs to produce. In Europe, we excel at the first two, but our manufacturing know-how is disappearing. At Sandvik and Aker, I saw firsthand how quickly production costs ballooned and competitive edge eroded when early design decisions weren’t built with manufacturing in mind. We built Encube to modify that,” states Nordell.
The $23 million financing will accelerate Encube’s commercial expansion across Europe, deepen industrial partnerships, and scale AI capabilities tailored to hardware workflows. Investors see it as a future-defining startup poised to do for physical product engineering what Figma accomplished for digital design.
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