Productive Machines, a UK-based deep tech startup, has raised £510,000 (approximately $660,000) from innovation agency Digital Catapult to accelerate the commercial rollout of its autonomous CNC optimisation software and help manufacturers improve efficiency, sustainability, and competitiveness.
The company’s flagship Software-as-a-Service platform, SenseNC, uses machine learning and digital simulation to improve the performance of CNC (computer numerical control) machines—automated tools used to cut, shape and finish metal parts with extreme precision.
Traditionally, engineers rely on a time-consuming process of trial and error to get the settings right. Productive Machines’ software automates this process, allowing manufacturers to test and refine their machining strategies virtually, before cutting begins—saving time, materials and energy.
With this latest investment, the Yorkshire-based startup plans to expand its customer base in the UK and Europe, while responding to growing demand from industrial partners in North America.
Its SenseNC Feeds product is already listed on the Siemens Xcelerator Marketplace, priced at £1,250, making it accessible to manufacturers of all sizes.
Erdem Ozturk, CEO and co-founder of Productive Machines, said: “As manufacturers around the world face growing cost and sustainability pressures, deep tech solutions like SenseNC are becoming essential tools for boosting productivity and reshoring high-value production. This investment will help us build new international partnerships and demonstrate what deep tech can deliver at scale.”
The startup has already proven its concept through pilots with aerospace supplier AML, FICEP UK, and Northern Ireland’s Advanced Manufacturing Innovation Centre (AMIC), enabling some customers to reshore component production from overseas and reduce their carbon footprint in the process.
Susan Bowen, CEO of Digital Catapult, said: “Productive Machines has developed a technology that could transform the economics of manufacturing. Its software delivers cost savings, carbon reductions, and resilience—three critical levers for industrial competitiveness in global supply chains.”
A broader trend is emerging across advanced manufacturing, where data-driven tools are reshaping everything from machining precision to factory operations.
In the US, companies like First Resonance are developing real-time factory operating systems to streamline production for aerospace and robotics firms and recently launched a manufacturing solution to deliver agentic workflows for manufacturing.
Others—such as Oqton—are exploring AI-led optimisation of machining processes more directly aligned with Productive Machines’ approach.
