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Impossible Objects

HardwareNorthbrook, Illinois, United StatesFounded 2011· One of 1733 Hardware companies tracked by AMPulse

High-speed composite 3D printing technology (CBAM) for producing strong, lightweight, and dimensionally accurate fiber-reinforced composite parts.

CEO / Founder
Steve Hoover
Team Size
11-50
Stage
Active
Total Funding
$53.3M
Latest Round
Series A
Key Investors
OCA Ventures, IDEA Fund Partners, Mason Avenue Investments, Huizenga Capital Management

Technology & Products

Key Products

Impossible Objects offers the CBAM 25 3D printing system, focusing on industrial 3D printing and composite-based additive manufacturing technology.

Technological Advantage

The primary advantage is speed, claiming to be up to 15x faster than competitors, which bridges the gap between prototyping and mass production. The process allows for a wider range of high-performance material combinations (e.g., Carbon Fiber with PEEK) and produces parts with exceptional strength, dimensional accuracy, and no warping, even on large, flat geometries.

Patent position

Its patent-family focus shifted from 92% to 100% Equipment and from 38% to 100% Materials between 2019-2021 and 2022-2024. AMPulse analysis

Filing momentum
7 families filed 2022–2024, 20 in 2019–2021
Focus, 2019–2021 → 2022–2024
Equipment 92% → 100%Materials 38% → 100%
Filed in
US 46%WO 27%EP 15%CN 12%
Named competitors, AM patent families
Markforged 83Desktop Metal 83Stratasys 494

52 AM patent families in total. Recent years are still being published, so read a filing change against the same-office figure.

Differentiation

Value Proposition

Delivering production speeds up to 15x faster than conventional composite 3D printing, enabling the use of high-performance materials like PEEK and carbon fiber to create parts with superior strength-to-weight ratios and dimensional accuracy, making mass production of composite parts viable.

How They Differentiate

Impossible Objects differentiates primarily through the speed of its CBAM process, which is significantly faster than the continuous fiber reinforcement technologies used by competitors like Markforged. It also supports a broader range of high-temperature performance polymers like PEEK, and its sheet-based method results in parts with excellent dimensional stability and strength, particularly in the Z-axis.

Market & Competition

Target Customers

Manufacturers in the aerospace, defense, automotive, and industrial sectors requiring high-performance, end-use parts, tooling, jigs, and fixtures.

Industry Verticals

Aerospace/Defense, Automotive, Industrial Manufacturing, Electronics

Competitors

Markforged; Desktop Metal (including its subsidiary Continuous Composites); Stratasys

Growth & Milestones

Growth Metrics

Revenue: $4.8M

Major Milestones

Launch of the CBAM-2 printer., Launch of the significantly faster CBAM 25 printer, targeting mass production., Securing a partnership with BASF for material development., Appointment of former Xerox CTO Steve Hoover as CEO to scale the company., Successfully delivering parts for customers like the U.S. Air Force and Ford.

Notable Customers

Ford Motor Company; Jabil; U.S. Air Force

https://impossible-objects.com

Recent coverage of Impossible Objects

Official records

Filings, certifications, and programme counts AMPulse can show for this company.

  • [F] SBIR/STTR · 11 AM awards · latest 2023
  • [F] Additive Manufacturing of UAV Parts with Embedded Circuits for Detecting Part Failures · 2023 · USD 1,249,978
  • [F] Rapid Response 3D Printing for MX, Repair, & Overhaul · 2023 · USD 74,998
  • [F] Composite Based Additive Manufacturing Scaling of Throughput, Volume, and Speed · 2023 · USD 1,799,971
  • [F] Additive Manufacturing of Ceramic & High Temperature Complex UAS Components · 2022 · USD 749,997
  • [F] High-Temperature High-Performance 3D-Printed Ceramics · 2022 · USD 49,996
  • [F] Personalized Lightweight, High-Mobility Body Armor from Additive Manufacturing · 2022 · USD 49,996

AM patents

AM-relevant patents linked to this company.

Patents
61
Granted
23
Families
52

Leading domains: process (58), equipment (45), material (18)

Filings by year: 2024: 5 · 2023: 3 · 2021: 8 · 2020: 10 · 2019: 5 · 2018: 3

  1. Method and apparatus for automated composite-based additive manufacturing10046552 · US
  2. CAMERA-BASED MONITORING SYSTEM FOR 3-DIMENSIONAL PRINTING04094189 · EP
  3. Methods for Fabricating Three-Dimensional Printed Composites20160082658 · US
  4. METHOD FOR AUTOMATED COMPOSITE-BASED ADDITIVE MANUFACTURING03414094 · EP
  5. METHODS AND APPARATUS FOR THREE-DIMENSIONAL PRINTED COMPOSITES2014134224 · WO

Funding rounds

  • Series B$40 million2026-09-11Lead: Inflection Equity · Source
  • Series A$4.1M2019-05-21Lead: OCA Ventures
  • Series A$6.4M2017-10-10Lead: OCA Ventures
  • Seed$2.8M2014-12-16Lead: OCA Ventures

Why this company matters

AMPulse analysis, not a company disclosure

Impossible Objects occupies a distinct niche in additive manufacturing with its Composite-Based Additive Manufacturing (CBAM) process, a sheet-based lamination technique that differs fundamentally from the extrusion or powder-bed fusion methods used by most composite 3D printing competitors. The company aims to bridge the gap between prototyping and mass production of fiber-reinforced parts, positioning itself against both other AM firms and traditional processes like CNC machining of composites and injection molding.

The CBAM process works by using high-speed inkjet printing to apply a liquid solution to sheets of fiber reinforcement, such as carbon fiber or fiberglass. Thermoplastic powder is then deposited, adhering only to the wet areas. The sheets are stacked, heated, and pressed to fuse the polymer and form the final part. This approach enables the use of high-performance materials like PEEK and carbon fiber, producing parts with superior strength-to-weight ratios, dimensional accuracy, and no warping even on large, flat geometries. The company's current system is the CBAM 25, designed for industrial production environments.

Target customers include manufacturers in aerospace, defense, automotive, and industrial sectors that need high-strength, lightweight end-use parts, tooling, jigs, and fixtures. Named customers include Ford Motor Company, Jabil, and the U.S. Air Force. The company has also secured partnerships with BASF for material development and Ricoh 3D. Key investors include OCA Ventures, IDEA Fund Partners, Mason Avenue Investments, and Huizenga Capital Management.

The primary technological advantage claimed is speed, up to 15 times faster than competing composite 3D printing technologies, which could make mass production of composite parts economically viable. The sheet-based method also provides strong Z-axis properties, a common weakness in layer-based AM. However, the company operates in a competitive landscape that includes Markforged, Desktop Metal, and Stratasys, and its relatively small scale and niche process may limit adoption outside of specific high-performance applications.