One of Texas’ largest angel rounds bets on scaling expertise as manufacturing’s skills gap widens

AUSTIN, Texas, Feb. 18, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Circuit, an Austin-based company building an AI platform for manufacturing and service organizations, today announced it has raised $30 million from individual investors. The funding comes as manufacturers face growing market and product complexity while a wave of retirements takes decades of expertise out the door.

“The work is getting harder and the people who know how to do it are leaving,” said Tyson Tuttle, co-founder and CEO of Circuit. “Products are more complex, tools are changing, and U.S. manufacturers are being asked to produce more with fewer experienced hands. Circuit exists to make sure expertise scales with the business.”

Manufacturing and service teams make hundreds of high-stakes decisions every day: configuring equipment, building quotes, guiding installations, and troubleshooting issues. The knowledge behind those decisions lives across scattered documentation and legacy systems – but more often in the heads of the people who’ve done the work for decades. Deloitte and The Manufacturing Institute estimate that expertise drain could leave as many as 1.9 million manufacturing jobs unfilled by 2033.

“In a market crowded with general-purpose AI, it matters that Circuit actually understands manufacturing and service workflows – and how to measure success,” said Tony Bender, executive and advisor at Culligan. “They’re turning our years of product documents and operational know-how into guided execution our teams and dealers can rely on.”

Circuit turns that documentation – including complex visuals like technical manuals, schematics, CAD files, and exploded views – into actionable workflows that help teams configure, quote, and troubleshoot with confidence. The platform plugs into ERPs, quoting tools, and CRMs, pulling documentation from where it already lives. Teams input job requirements or field conditions in plain language. Circuit then layers on proprietary reasoning that interprets configuration logic, compatibility rules, and technical dependencies.

Leading manufacturers and product-driven service organizations – such as Culligan and Four Hands – are already seeing results: faster quotes, fewer support errors, and new hires up to speed in weeks instead of months.

The round includes backing from business leaders and experienced company builders who have built and scaled multi-billion-dollar organizations. Investors include Jim Breyer, Charlie Amato, Lew Cirne, Niccolo De Masi, Tom Long, Gary Petersen, Gary Rieschel, and Craig Robins.

Circuit was founded by Silicon Labs veterans, including former CEO Tyson Tuttle, who bring decades of experience building and shipping products in manufacturing and industrial environments. That firsthand perspective shaped both the platform and Circuit’s approach to partnering with customers – integrating AI into the workflows their teams rely on every day. The new funding will support continued product development, expanded customer deployments, and hiring across engineering and go-to-market teams.

By embedding trusted guidance into everyday workflows, Circuit helps manufacturers move faster, reduce errors, and deliver more consistent execution.

About Circuit
Circuit is purpose-built AI for manufacturing and service organizations. The platform turns technical documentation into an intelligent engine that guides teams through business-critical workflows like quoting, field service, and customer support. Learn more at circuit.ai.

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