CINCINNATI (WKRC) — A Cincinnati startup founded by three former SpaceX engineers has launched an autonomous steel fabrication factory in Camp Washington and secured $15 million in seed funding to expand its AI-powered manufacturing technology.
The company, 1872, said the funding is among the largest seed investment rounds in Ohio history and was led through private funds advised by The O.H.I.O. Fund.
Located in Camp Washington’s Spring Grove Avenue industrial corridor, the company’s first factory is designed to automate steel fabrication using artificial intelligence, robotics and proprietary software. Company leaders say the technology will dramatically reduce production times for steel components used in modular construction and infrastructure projects.
“This seed funding from The O.H.I.O. Fund allows us to begin production for customers at what we believe will be the first advanced, autonomous steel fabrication factory in the United States,” 1872 CEO and co-founder Dan Summers said in a media release.
The startup plans to fully automate the factory by 2027. Its manufacturing system combines AI software with robotic welding technology from Columbus-based Path Robotics, allowing much of the fabrication process to be completed with minimal human intervention.
The facility occupies the former David Hummel Building Company site, a 1903 industrial building whose namesake helped construct Cincinnati City Hall and Union Terminal.
State and regional leaders said the investment reinforces southwest Ohio’s growing role in advanced manufacturing.
“Camp Washington has been one of Cincinnati’s most important industrial districts for more than 150 years, and 1872 proves that its next chapter is being written right here,” said Jill Meyer, founding partner of The O.H.I.O. Fund.
Company officials said they chose Ohio because of its manufacturing heritage, skilled workforce and engineering talent from universities including the University of Cincinnati and Ohio State University.