Sols, a company that hopes to change the way you walk with 3D-printed insoles, has secured $11.1 million in funding from Founders Fund, Lux Capital, Tenaya Capital, and Melo7 Tech Partners.
Led by founder Kegan Schouwenburg, Sols only distributes its custom insoles in partnership with doctors — for now. The new funds, Schouwenburg tells us, will enable the company to launch a far cheaper direct-to-consumer product.
[aditude-amp id="flyingcarpet" targeting='{"env":"staging","page_type":"article","post_id":1669383,"post_type":"story","post_chan":"none","tags":null,"ai":false,"category":"none","all_categories":"business,entrepreneur,","session":"A"}']At heart of Sols’ technology is in how it generates 3D models of your foot. The company’s site claims it only needs “three photos” to capture “thousands of data points” and build the insole. From there, the insole is printed, refined, and shipped to consumers in about six days, Sols’ site says.
For Sols, insoles are apparently just the beginning. The company tells us it aims to eventually makes its products “smart” — wearable and health tracking tech — and has already experimented with entirely 3D printed shoes.
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As far as hype goes, the 3D printing industry is sort of a paradox; like virtual reality, it continues to excite, yet it hasn’t really changed the way we live. Schouwenburg, formerly 3D printing marketplace Shapeways’ director of industrial engineering, seems to believe Sols will spark a new wave in custom, mass-manufactured products.
New York-based Sols has raised $19.3 million to date.
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