How Australian Robotics Company Luyten is Pioneering Sustainable 3D Printing

How does a group of visionary engineers decide to transform housing construction? By 3D printing with giant robots, says co-founder and CEO Ahmed Mahil.

Fact file

Co-founders: Dr Ahmed Mahil (above), CEO, 35, Dr Godfrey Keung, CSO, 30, Dr Michael Stanley, CTO, 31, and Shaun Heap, CMO, 26
Investors: High-net-worth individuals and families, institutional investors and venture capitalists
First customer: University of NSW, 2021
Headquarters: Melbourne, with an office in London and, by mid-year, New York

What’s your elevator pitch?

“We’re a robotics company that makes large-scale robots to automate construction, with an emphasis on 3D printing. To build a simple wall [in conventional construction] you need about five different supply chains – bricks, timber, plaster, insulation and finishing panels, plus the tradies. We replace all of that with Luyten Ultimatecrete, an eco-friendly, ultra-high-strength cementitious mixture that is affordable and earthquake-, fire-, flood-, termite- and mould-proof. Because it’s made using robots it has precision to 100 micrometres – that’s more precise than a heart surgeon – and an at-least 30 per cent lower cost than traditional methods. To build a 200-square-metre house takes about 26 hours because the printer doesn’t need to stop.”

How did the idea come about?

“I was teaching robotics with my colleagues Godfrey and Michael and we were working on projects for 3D printing in metals and also large-scale robotic systems. We felt frustrated that the construction industry, specifically how to build a house, hadn’t changed. Automation helps you scale and allows you to create various shapes.”

What was the problem you were trying to solve?

“There’s a 1967 video with American newsman Walter Cronkite showing what housing would be like in 2001 – houses would be made of panels, architects would have greater flexibility and the quality of life would improve for more people. But that hasn’t happened with housing construction and we believed we had the know-how to change that.”

How did you get it off the ground?

“We worked ‘incognito’ for a couple of years and got our minimum viable product up then a patent in 2020. If we’d come up with the idea 10 years earlier, it would have gone nowhere. This was the perfect time because there were issues with the supply chain so builders, architects and end-users were more open to this new idea. Our biggest hurdle was to get our material and the first house up to the national code of compliance. We’ve built about 10 houses so far but we’re more about developing the robotics and training and equipping the construction industry with our technology. Our AI powered Platypus 3D concrete printer is one of the biggest robots in the world and we’re proud that we’ve sold it to a company in Japan. Who would have thought Australia could sell robots to Japan?”

How do you convince investors?

“We ask them to visit our warehouse and see how it works – normally that closes the deal. Many folks expect it to still be in its infancy and are surprised to see that it works. From there, the conversations become way easier. That’s my advice to any entrepreneur: spend the money to get your prototype to a full product and you’ll be amazed how smooth your journey with investors becomes.”

What’s next?

“We believe it’s a necessity for Australia to have a sovereign lunar outpost. We’re working with the UNSW School of Built Environment to research and develop a 3D printer robot capable of building housing structures on the moon, using lunar regolith. People might think we’re crazy but they also thought that when we said we could build a house with a 3D printer. It is possible!”