Marple Secures Strategic Funding to Bring Data Insights to Automotive and Aerospace Industries

Marple, recently closed a new investment round to support their growth into the automotive and aerospace industry. The round was led by Network Venture Partners and joined by Birdhouse Ventures and imec.istart.

  • Network Venture Partners: A distinctive initiative by and for founders backed by a number of entrepreneurial investors and family offices.
  • Birdhouse Ventures: An early-stage investment fund that supports Tech startups in Belgium and AgeTech startups across Europe.
  • imec.istart: An open accelerator program that supports tech startups with pre-seed funding and tailored support to succeed and grow globally.

Idea from Formula One

Marple was founded by Matthias Baert and Nero Vanbiervliet, two engineers who were fed up with the data tools they had to use. Matthias worked as an engineer for the Mercedes Formula 1 team during the 2017 and 2018 seasons. He discovered that even in Formula 1, known for its cutting-edge technology, there was a lack of effective software to efficiently organise and analyse data collected from the cars. “This signalled to us that there's a need for a better solution,” says Matthias.

A solution based on modern data algorithms

Engineering datasets are massive, particularly those from sensors producing time series data. Processing such large datasets is complex and requires specialised handling. Marple recognised this challenge and developed a unique time series algorithm capable of instantaneously processing billions of data points. Built around this powerful data engine, the Marple platform caters specifically to engineers' needs. Engineers require specialised tools to visualise and analyse their time series data—a need that standard data analysis tools can't fulfil.

Belgian startup going global

Even though there is a lot of competition in the data analysis market, Marple stands unique with its offering and is gaining more and more traction in the automotive & aerospace industries. With its first product, Marple has already managed to attract customers globally. In 2023, more than 3000 engineers all over the world used Marple in their data analysis workflow. Companies like Atlas Copco, Verhaert, Yuso, DeepDrive, EddyGrid, and Aura Aero already make use of Marple next to some well-known motorsport teams and various aerospace companies that cannot be disclosed.

Marple in the electrification of the Automotive industry

DeepDrive, a German company developing electric motors for major automotive players like BMW, utilises Marple for their data analysis needs. Marple enables DeepDrive to efficiently process and interpret the extensive data generated during their electric motor development and testing phases.

“Marple simplifies collaboration between engineers. Also, thanks to being a central storage for measurement data, DeepDrive got rid of different locations to store data” - Christopher Römmelmayer, Co-Founder of DeepDrive.

Marple in the electrification of the Aerospace industry

Vertical Aerospace, a British Aerospace company based in Bristol, develops a zero-emission, electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft (eVTOL). During the testing and development, the engineers rely on Marple for their data analysis.

“At Vertical, we use Marple to analyse our rig and flight test data. Marple is the perfect tool for the job: Marple’s interface allows people of varying technical ability to work together using the same tools while not skimping on the in-depth analysis functions users need.” - Samuel Meijer, Software Engineer at Vertical Aerospace.

Marple in the next-gen transportation industry

Hardt Hyperloop, a Dutch Hyperloop transportation engineering company, is redefining transportation by developing vehicles that float on magnetic fields using only 10% of the energy compared to road or aviation transport. By using Marple, they are able to coordinate and combine efforts, allowing them to make the right data-driven decisions. 

"At Hardt Hyperloop, Marple is the point of reference whenever we need multiple eyes looking at a problem. Just a quick share, and colleagues can look at exactly the data in question. This is a game changer in data-driven development!" - Gert Spek, Lead Engineer Tractive at Hard Hyperloop.

From small to big customers

As Marple enters its next phase of growth, the company is setting its sights on attracting larger customers within the Automotive and Aerospace industries. This strategic move aims to expand Marple's footprint in these technologically advanced sectors, where data analysis plays a crucial role in innovation and development.

To achieve this goal, Marple will focus on integration with established databases. Solutions such as Microsoft Fabric, Timescale, InfluxData, Apache Spark, Mireo… are gaining more and more traction in engineering, and Marple wants to join in on this trend. Marple already partners up with Microsoft, Influx and Mireo to help customers solve their data challenges.

About Marple

Marple is a B2B SaaS startup based in Antwerp, Belgium. Our mission is to empower engineers to make data-driven decisions. We achieve this with a web-based time series data analysis platform designed for engineering teams that is able to give relevant insights in the blink of an eye. We focus on data from tests and measurements (=sensor data) while developing complex and dynamic systems.

For further information about Marple, visit www.marpledata.com

About Network Venture Partners

Network Venture Partners is a distinctive initiative by and for entrepreneurs. They combine the hands-on experience of founders of a successful global scale-up (FleetMaster) with the active support of a network of entrepreneurial investors and family offices. Leveraging this unique ecosystem, Network Venture Partners seeks to invest in and actively contribute to high-potential startup companies and help them scale their business.

“We participate as genuine co-founders in all our companies and seek to support them however and whenever we can through the experience and connections of Network Venture Partners”, said Frederik De Witte, co-investor of Network Venture Partners

For more information about Network Venture Partners, visit www.networkventure.partners.

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