Concrete is a math problem. A structural engineer has a set of loads to bear, a set of fabrication constraints, and a set of material costs. The answer, for decades, has been a standard slab: heavy, carbon-intensive, and safe. Forma Systems, a UK-based startup, is betting that the answer can be lighter, cheaper, and greener, if you let a machine run the numbers.
Sandy Kurt, the company's CEO, has built FormaOpt, a generative design-optimization tool that integrates engineering equations with fabrication rules. The promise is to let a concrete manufacturer redesign a structural element in seconds, not days, shaving weight and embodied carbon while keeping the thing buildable [Perplexity Sonar Pro Brief, 2025]. The company's early proof point is a prestressed floor slab developed with J.P. Carrara, a manufacturer. According to a trade publication, the shape-optimized design saved 33% in weight and 31% in embodied carbon compared to a standard eight-inch hollowcore plank [High-Profile Monthly, 2026].
The wedge into a $200 billion material
The market Forma Systems is chasing is not subtle. The company cites a $200 billion opportunity, framing its value proposition with a stark comparison: for the material required to make one building, we can make two [Demo Day 2025 video, 2025]. The target customer is the precast concrete manufacturer, a business that runs on thin margins and standardized products. Forma's software is a wedge into that process, offering a SaaS tool that could simultaneously cut material costs and unlock premium pricing for lower-carbon products.
Early signals and the team taking shape
Forma Systems is extremely early. It was incorporated in the UK in late 2024 and has no disclosed funding rounds [PitchBook, 2025]. Its traction so far rests on academic and state-level validation: it won MIT's Climate and Energy Prize and an Innovate Mass award [Demo Day 2025 video, 2025]. The company also claims to have secured a first paying customer [Demo Day 2025 video, 2025]. The team is assembling, with LinkedIn profiles showing a small group forming around Kurt, including roles in business development and operations [LinkedIn profiles of Kiley Feickert, Aateeb A. Khan, Sandy Curth, 2026].
| Role | Name |
|---|---|
| CEO & Founder | Sandy Kurt |
| Team Member | Kiley Feickert |
| Business Development | Aateeb A. Khan |
| Team Member | Sandy Curth |
Where the pour could crack
For all the promise of its algorithm, Forma Systems faces the classic hurdles of any software selling into heavy industry. The sales cycle to a precast plant is long, and adoption requires convincing engineers to trust a black-box optimization over decades of proven standards. The 31% carbon saving is a compelling data point, but it is a single case study from a collaboration; proving that saving translates across dozens of product types and fabrication setups is the real challenge. Forma's advantage must be a deep, proprietary understanding of precast fabrication constraints that generalist tools lack.
Its path forward hinges on a few clear milestones. The next twelve months will show if the first customer becomes a referenceable case study, if a seed round materializes to fund commercial hires, and if the software can move from optimizing singular elements to entire building systems.