Mayku

Mayku is a London-based company that develops and sells desktop manufacturing machines, enabling creators to produce parts and products in-house. The company was founded in the summer of 2015 by Alex Smilansky and Benjamin Redford with the goal of making manufacturing processes more accessible. The co-founders met while studying design at Goldsmiths, University of London, and later worked together at a digital product development studio. The idea for Mayku originated after Redford's trip to factories in China, which highlighted how prohibitive mass production was for individual creators and small businesses. This led to a shared ambition to create a 'desktop factory'.

Mayku's first product, the FormBox, was a desktop vacuum former powered by a household vacuum cleaner. The initial concept was developed by Redford as part of his degree show project. The company launched a Kickstarter campaign for the FormBox in May 2016, which significantly exceeded its funding goal by raising $588,000 in 30 days. This success attracted early investors, including notable figures like Robin Klein. The FormBox allows users to create molds and replicas from 3D forms in seconds, working with various materials like resin, plaster, and chocolate. It is designed to be a companion to 3D printers, accelerating the production of multiples from a single 3D-printed master.

Following the FormBox, Mayku launched the Multiplier, a desktop pressure former that offers industrial-grade precision, achieving sub-micron resolution for creating detailed parts and high-quality molds. This machine is designed to bridge the gap between prototyping and mass production, catering to small and medium-sized production runs. The company's business model involves selling these hardware machines and generating recurring revenue through the sale of proprietary materials, software, and templates. Mayku serves a wide range of clients, from individual hobbyists, educators, and chocolatiers to industrial design labs and multinational corporations like Meta. Their machines are used in various applications, including creating dental trays, product casings, and microfluidic chips.

Keywords: desktop manufacturing, pressure forming, vacuum forming, rapid prototyping, mold making, small batch production, FormBox, Multiplier, product development, hardware, industrial design, custom packaging, educational technology, craft manufacturing, 3D printing companion, thermoplastics, local manufacturing, fabrication tools, creative technology, engineering tools