In industry, digital simulation has long been the prerogative of design offices and R&D engineers. DotBlocks, a startup founded in 2023, is one of the players who intend to open up the power of digital computing to the entire industrial value chain.
Designed for professions in metallurgy, glass or high temperature processes, the DotBlocks platform allows you to model, visualize and optimize physical scenarios in just a few clicks. The objective is to reduce dependence on experts and bring R&D, design and production teams closer together. Where traditional simulation required several weeks of configuration, the company promises to get started in one day.
The company boasts an approach combining algorithmic research, software engineering and interface design. Each simulation is adapted to the specific industrial need, by automating the construction of physical models. For Kevin Lippera, co-founder and CEO of DotBlocks, “digital simulation should no longer be reserved for R&D teams. Our mission is to give everyone the power to explore, test and innovate thanks to a tool that is as simple as it is powerful.”
This approach is echoed in academic circles; the National School of Bridges and Roads is already using the software in its student projects. According to its director, Anthony Briant, “with DotBlocks, our students have a tool that is both accessible and powerful. The increase in skills is very rapid and where previously they spent months mastering traditional simulation software, they can concentrate on modeling and analyzing results.”
Investors identify this democratization of digital computing as a strategic lever for European industry. Christophe Raynaud, co-founder of OPRTRS Club, sees it as “a small revolution” in a context of decarbonization and reindustrialization. For Léa Verdillon, partner of Aglaé Ventures, “DotBlocks has been able to combine in-depth knowledge of the sector with strong execution capacity”. For his part, Alexis Robert, general partner of Kima Ventures, emphasizes that the startup “rebuilds all the fundamentals of computers” and that it embodies “a new generation infrastructure for digital simulation”.
Founded by Kevin Lippera (ex-Saint-Gobain) and Joffrey Bluthé (ex-CEA), DotBlocks raised 1.4 million euros in pre-seed from OPRTRS Club (lead), Aglaé Ventures, Kima Ventures, and several business angels including Olivier Pomel (Datadog) and Thibaud Elzière (Hexa). This financing aims to accelerate commercial development, strengthen R&D and extend the platform to large industrial groups.
