Outbound Aerospace
Setting the Scene
The aviation industry is struggling to meet rapidly growing aircraft demand while manufacturing costs remain higher than ever.
Where the industry falls short:
Outdated Processes: For six decades, costly aircraft production processes have remained unchanged, with minimal technological advancements.
Unsustainable Infrastructure: The industry’s supply base and factory lines are strained to capacity, and manufacturers can’t afford to expand.
This week’s company is building the next generation of economical and sustainable airliners by transforming the way aircraft are manufactured and designed.
In a Sentence
Outbound Aerospace is a 3D printing-based aircraft manufacturer revolutionizing production efficiency.
3D printing-based: Utilizes advanced additive manufacturing to produce molds and parts at scale with precision.
Efficiency: Achieves a 50% reduction in overall costs, 12x faster engineering cycles compared to traditional processes, and reduced fuel consumption for customers.
Bulleted Version:
- In the same way that Tesla transformed battery production to scale EVs, Outbound Aerospace is reshaping aviation with precision 3D printing to scale production while providing a more efficient solution.
The Basics
- Headquarters: Seattle, Washington
- Employee Count: 4
- Investors:
Antler, Blue Collective, and various angels
- Funding amount: $1.1 M pre-seed
- Business model: B2B, manufacturing and selling airplanes to airlines
- Early traction: Flying prototype is 80% completed, active discussions
Due Diligence
WHAT WE LIKE
Market Opportunity: The aviation industry faces a potential airplane shortage, with 40,000+ new planes needed in the next 20 years, while current suppliers are only on pace to produce half, creating a massive market opportunity.
Disruptive Manufacturing Process: Outbound Aerospace’s reliance on 3D printing introduces cost savings and supply chain resilience, reducing dependency on global logistics and legacy suppliers prone to bottlenecks and delays.
Sustainability: By incorporating aerodynamic designs that reduce fuel consumption, Outbound aligns directly with the aviation industry's push for achieving net-zero emissions by 2050.
POTENTIAL RISKS
Regulatory Compliance: Aviation regulations are highly complex, and delays in certification could significantly impact the company’s go-to-market timeline and overall strategy.
Extended Sales Cycle: Selling to airlines often involves multi-year negotiations, which may delay revenue generation and require substantial upfront capital investment.
Starting with Private Aircrafts: While targeting private jets to generate initial revenue is a practical strategy, it risks uncertainty in customer demand due to a lack of clear efficiency-driven and environmental use cases compared to airlines.
Founder Profile
Ian Lee, CEO: Previously taught at Missouri S&T, then a mix of product engineering, manufacturing, and sales
Jake Armenta, CTO: Previously a manufacturing & integration engineer at Relativity Space and Boeing.
Comps
JetZero: Backed by Alaska Star Ventures and US Air Force Reserve.
Nautilus: Backed by Morris Group, Eve Air Mobility, and Greenbird.
Why Outbound Aerospace
By reimagining the manufacturing process, making it 12x faster, and reducing fuel consumption and costs by 50%, Outbound Aerospace has huge potential to land some massive airlines as customers as the company grows.