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Berlin based Key Ward, a pioneering deeptech company in engineering data management and AI adoption across automotive, aerospace, and various other industries, has emerged from stealth mode with €1 million in pre-seed funding. The round was led by Swedish venture capital firm Wellstreet, with participation from prominent industry leaders.
Key Ward offers a no-code SaaS platform which enables engineering teams to seamlessly integrate AI and manage complex data without requiring coding skills or expensive in-house development. By leveraging AI, the platform enables engineers to extract and structure complex datasets from historical simulations, creating custom AI models that can predict design performance in seconds. This contrasts sharply with traditional, resource-intensive simulations that can take days. This capability not only accelerates the design process but also addresses the critical challenge of moving from proof of concept to operational production, helping to avoid the common pitfalls of the "PoC graveyard."
The idea for the company originated when co-founder and CEO Hoss Habib, then working at Porsche, recognized the inefficiencies and high costs associated with traditional car simulations and wind tunnel testing. Motivated to find a better solution, he teamed up with Maxime Bunel, and fellow engineers Asparuh Stoyanov, and Lyuben Vodenicharov to create Key Ward. The team has since successfully piloted the technology within both the automotive and aerospace industries, demonstrating its transformative potential. Initially focused on these sectors, Key Ward’s solver-agnostic platform now proves its versatility across industries like packaging, bio-medicine, and marine. Its capability to manage complex simulations and geometrical data makes it an essential tool for engineers aiming to optimize designs quickly and efficiently.
Key Ward has now successfully secured a €1 million pre-seed investment, led by the Stockholm-based venture capital firm Wellstreet. Joining the round are prominent industry figures with connections to global giants like Siemens, Autodesk, Dassault Systèmes, Ansys, Altair, and Hexagon – notably Andy Fine, Edouard lété and Eric Saint Frison.
The company intends to use the funds to scale its technology internationally and establish itself as the industry leader and go-to platform for engineers looking to make their designs better and faster.
“At Key Ward, we believe that managing data is the key to successful AI. AI should be accessible to all engineers, not just data scientists. Our platform empowers teams across industries to integrate AI seamlessly into their workflows, reducing complexity, costs, and time. Whether in automotive, aerospace, or even bio-medicine, our solver-agnostic solution allows engineers to focus on innovation while maintaining full control over their data and AI models.” says Key Ward’s CEO, Hoss Habib.
According to Wellstreet, the new portfolio company is a perfect match for its newly established fund, Wellstreet Ventures Fund II. The venture capital firm also looks forward to contributing to Key Ward’s future beyond the capital injection.
“Despite the AI “hype”, the adoption of AI tools – beyond R&D and pilot projects – has been very slow in the more traditional industries. By tackling early adoption issues, such as the ML-readiness of available data as well as the knowledge and skills gaps, Key Ward is well positioned to play a pivotal role in how the engineering industries can start to leverage AI, at scale, already today. This is exactly what we are looking for when it comes to investing in AI / ML related companies.” says Wellstreet’s Partner and Fund Manager, Jessica Rameau.
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Press contact:
Hoss Habib, Co-founder, Key Ward, (+49 1520 8455655), hoss@key-ward.com
Jessica Rameau, Partner & Fund Manager, Wellstreet, (+46 769469669), jessica.rameau@wellstreet.vc
Press images:
Download high resolution images here.
About Key Ward:
Key Ward, a pioneering German startup in DataOps and AI, provides a no-code SaaS solution that seamlessly integrates machine learning and deep learning models into engineering workflows. This empowers teams to explore, manage, and optimize data without coding skills. As AI technology advances, Key Ward ensures that engineering teams can easily adapt and maintain full control over their data pipelines. The platform is fueling innovation across industries such as automotive, aerospace, wind energy, and packaging.
Visit website here: keyward.io
About Wellstreet:
Wellstreet is a multi-fund VC, investing in pre-seed and seed startups. Wellstreet has invested in several successful technology companies including Tibber, DanAds, Checkin.com, Scrive, and Bambuser. The firm is committed to building sustainable and profitable tech companies, and accelerating the innovations and entrepreneurs of today, leading to a better and sounder tomorrow.
