St. Pete 3D commerce firm raises $7.5M, will advance AI • St Pete Catalyst

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St. Petersburg-based virtual reality firm 3D Cloud by Marxent, which creates room design platforms, has raised $7.5 million in a Series D round that will further advance its design tools.

Marxent board member Arnie Bellini, the former CEO and co-founder of Clearwater-based tech company ConnectWise, led the latest round. Longtime investor Lee Arnold, executive chair of Colliers International Florida, also participated in the raise, according to Marxent's Thursday announcement.

"The company has exceptional leadership, a massive product catalog, top brands and retailers, and a compelling vision for bringing this tech to new audiences," Bellini said in the prepared statement. "3D Cloud by Marxent's solutions drive both top-line growth and bottom-line savings for retailers regardless of economic conditions."

Marxent previously raised $19 million in a Series B round, which was followed by a $13.4 million Series C round in 2021 that was also led by Bellini.

Marxent specializes in augmented reality projects for furniture and home improvement retailers — including Lowe's, Ashley HomeStores, La-Z-Boy and Macy's. Marxent's platform allows consumers to virtually design and configure bathrooms, kitchens, living rooms, offices and outdoor spaces using furniture and decor from retailers. The user can purchase the products selected for the room.

"We are at the tipping point of the profitability and viability stage and are now focusing on scaling Marxent. With the new investment, we can expand and allow anyone from anywhere to use the tools," Marxent CEO Beck Besecker told the St. Pete Catalyst. "The world of 3D applications has been limited to professional tools, especially with space planning. Our mission as a company is to unlock 3D room-designing for the browser. We want to make it easier for retailers and manufacturers."

An example of a layout design for a kitchen from 3D Cloud by Marxent.

"Through automation and AI, we can automatically build a space, and you can edit it to your preferences. We think this new approach will cut 80% of the time it takes someone to build a room," Besecker said. "Think of this as Pinterest, as it shows different design images that you can pick from, and the platform takes the selection and automatically designs your room. You can still go in and change the paint color, layout and flooring,"

Besecker plans to launch Marxent's mobile application in the next quarter, allowing users to scan an existing floor plan from their phone.

Besecker said he is also interested in potentially leveraging ChatGPT, a generative artificial intelligence tool that allows companies to have human-like conversations through a chatbot. ChatGPT is largely used to answer common questions from consumers and help navigate them.

UBS Global Wealth Management forecasts that the AI hardware and services market will hit $90 billion by 2025.

"AI will drastically simplify aspects of the design process for independent design pros and enterprise retailers alike," Arnold said in the release. "3D commerce combined with AI is clearly the next frontier in furniture and home improvement retail, and 3D Cloud by Marxent is at the forefront."

Marxent currently operates out of the Thrive co-working space in downtown St. Petersburg. It has international offices in London and New Zealand.

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