As the UK faces up to an estimated 1 million potholes across the national road network, Robotiz3d’s sensor tech helps clients to identify problems before they appear.
Robotiz3d began as a PhD project supervised by the firm’s co-founders and became a spin-out from the University of Liverpool.
The original project related to autonomous 3D printing for house manufacturing of extruding concrete, but finished in 2019. In July 2020, Robotiz3d was incorporated, and the firm took on its first employee in November 2020.
Initially, Robotiz3d focused on fixing potholes autonomously using a large robotic vehicle, but the firm came to discover that more accuracy was required to analyse the road conditions, so it developed its own sensor.
Road asset managers became increasingly interested in the applications of this sensor technology and Robotiz3d’s directors decided this would become the focus of the business moving forward.
Purpose and technology
Robotiz3d provides road condition insights, with the key goal of preventative maintenance. It is a technology provider (final users have full control on what to survey, when and how frequently) and offers a flexible, zero-capex Data as a Service model.
Having pivoted away from autonomous repair, it is now focussed on developing the sensor technology and extracting information from the data that their sensor discovers, for use by clients. The device containing their sensor is not affected by weather conditions and operates at high-resolution and at high-speed.
Robotiz3d provides analysed data to clients, detailing type of road defects with accurate 3D measurements and their exact locations, but also provides aggregated metrics for quantifying overall road condition..The company is now developing a roadmap for clients which provides more insights linked to actions.
Clients
Robotiz3d’s client base is predominantly Tier 1 contractors (large multinational corporations) which look after long term maintenance contracts related to the Strategic Road Network on behalf of the Department for Transport and National Highways, as well as working with local authorities and their contractors.
Much of the firm’s current focus is on UK clients, but its future plan is to expand into Europe and later the United States. They are also hoping to work more closely with clients based in the Liverpool City Region.
CENTRAL TECH
Having outgrown its former workspaces within the University of Liverpool campus and at SciTech Daresbury, Robotiz3d wanted a larger office to accommodate its growing team and range of equipment.
The team also wanted to be more connected with Liverpool city centre, so moved into CENTRAL TECH in August 2026. With its close proximity to Lime Street Station, Central Station and the city’s bus network, CENTRAL TECH is an ideal location for staff commuting by public transport.
Team
Robotiz3d now has a team of 10, consisting of a small commercial team, alongside a technical team of data scientists, software engineers, and mechanical and mechatronics engineers. Most of the team are UoL alumni.
Awards
- Tech Climbers 2026 – ‘Official Tech Climbers’ main list.
- Building Innovation Awards 2025 – “Best Use of Automation or AI” and “Building Innovation of the Year 2025”
Future / Next steps
Robotiz3d is currently recruiting for a Senior Data Scientist, and a new CEO, with plans to
grow the team further by recruiting more data scientists next year.
It is also targeting a Series A funding round in 18 months’ time.
Quote
Dr Sebastiano Fichera, Interim CEO and Technical Director, Robotiz3d, said:
“We recognise that the UK is facing a major problem with potholes and we know that our sensor technology can be part of the solution, helping road asset managers to combat problems before they appear. We want to create value for customers, and help to make road maintenance more efficient and less costly.”
“Our relocation to CENTRAL TECH is an important part of that journey, helping us to secure a prominent new city centre base that helps to attract the best talent and showcase our services to clients.”
