UPDATED 14:55 EDT / JANUARY 24 2018

EMERGING TECH

SoftBank leads $865M round into Katerra, a startup that manufactures buildings

Katerra Inc., a startup trying single-handedly to “redefine” the $12 trillion construction industry, has found a new deep-pocketed backer to finance its ambitious plan.

The three-year-old company today announced the completion of a massive $865 million investment led by SoftBank Group Corp.’s Vision Fund. The Japanese carrier raised $93 billion last year to back startups building “foundational platforms” with significant long-term growth potential. It’s betting that Katerra will fit the bill.

The startup’s foundational platform isn’t a specific product, but rather a business model. Katerra has set up a high-tech construction operation that it says can handle every step of a building project, from the initial design phase to supplying the materials. The startup manufactures structural components, wall panels, windows and even furniture on its own production lines.

Besides removing the need for multiple different subcontractors, the scope of the operation also produces economies of scale. Katerra founder and Executive Chairman Michael Marks told Forbes that his startup can manufacture a three-pane glass window at the typical cost of a two-pane model.

The market has started to take notice. According to Marks, the former longtime chairman of contract electronics manufacturing giant Flextronics International Ltd., the company completed 11 projects in 2017 and is currently looking at a $1.3 billion backlog. Among the new projects are Union South Bay in Carson, California, due to open this year (pictured).

Katerra will invest the new capital in scaling up production operations to address the demand. The startup is currently building a factory in Washington that will produce structural components such as support planks from environmentally friendly timber. If everything goes according to plan, four more plants will come online in the next two years.

There are certain similarities between what Katerra is doing and Uber Technologies Inc.’s efforts in ride-hailing. Both companies are using technology to gain an edge over the established players in their respective markets, which typically follow more traditional business models.

SoftBank also became Uber’s largest investor earlier this month after closing a deal to acquire a 15 percent stake in the ride-hailing company provider. It has also backed several competing companies. Most recently, the Japanese carrier teamed up with Tencent Holdings Ltd. to lead a $2 billion round into India’s Ola.

SoftBank’s recent investments would suggest that it may back other construction technology companies besides Katerra further down the road. There are several different startups trying to shake up how building projects are carried out. Vallejo, California-based Blu Homes Inc., for example, makes so-called “prefab” homes that can be quickly assembled onsite.

Image: Katerra

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