Printing a Resilient Coast: Kind Designs' $10M Bet on Living Seawalls

MIAMI, FL – July 16, 2026 – In a resounding vote of confidence for climate resilience technology, Miami-based Kind Designs has closed an oversubscribed $10 million Pre-Series A funding round, signaling a potential sea change in the multi-billion-dollar coastal infrastructure market. The company, which set out to raise $5 million, saw investor interest swell to nearly $20 million, prompting it to double the round and accept a valuation of $70 million. The deal, which brings total funding to $21.5 million, is more than a financial headline; it’s a powerful endorsement of a radical new approach to protecting our increasingly vulnerable coastlines.

For generations, the answer to rising waters has been a simple, brutalist one: build a concrete wall. Kind Designs is proving there’s a better way. By merging large-scale 3D printing with ecological engineering, the company is pioneering “Living Seawalls”—structures that not only hold back the water but also restore the marine ecosystems they displace. The funding, supported by returning investors Mark Cuban and former D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty, along with new backer NBA forward Kyle Kuzma, will fuel a major expansion aimed at disrupting a centuries-old industry with a 21st-century solution.

“Most climate founders pitch you on saving the planet. Anya pitched me on an opportunity to disrupt a multi-billion-dollar coastal infrastructure market in a way that’s faster, cheaper, and also better for the environment,” commented Mark Cuban. “Kind Designs continues to cement itself as a leading innovator in coastal resiliency and is a perfect reminder that you can both ‘do well’ and ‘do good’.”

A New Blueprint for Coastal Defense

At its core, Kind Designs is challenging the fundamental premise of coastal defense. Traditional “gray” seawalls are effective at blocking water but create ecological dead zones, destroying marine habitats and often worsening water quality. The Miami-based firm's innovation lies in biomimicry—designing structures that imitate natural forms like mangrove roots and coral reefs.

Using massive, proprietary 3D-printing robots housed in its 50,000-square-foot Miami River factory, the company fabricates panels with complex, textured surfaces. These aren't just for aesthetics; they are engineered to provide ideal settlement points for marine life. The results from early projects are compelling. An installation in Miami Beach, studied by Florida International University, saw over 1,000 oysters colonize a Living Seawall in just nine months. These oysters, in turn, began filtering an estimated 50,000 gallons of water per day—a stark contrast to a neighboring traditional seawall that remained barren after decades.

This fusion of protection and restoration is what sets the technology apart. The platform now includes Living Seawall Tiles™ for retrofitting existing walls, 3D-Printed Artificial Reefs, and full-scale Living Shorelines. Each product is designed not just to defend against storm surge and flooding but to actively improve biodiversity, enhance water quality, and create a living breakwater that grows stronger and more effective over time.

From Startup to Scale-Up

The new infusion of capital is poised to launch Kind Designs from a promising startup into a national infrastructure powerhouse. The company's business trajectory already shows formidable momentum. After generating $1 million in revenue in 2025, it has secured $10 million in contracted revenue for the current year and is actively pursuing a pipeline of projects valued at $175 million.

This rapid growth is fueled by a strategic shift from residential projects to large-scale commercial, municipal, and federal contracts. High-profile hospitality brands like the Fontainebleau, Pagani, and Ritz-Carlton in Miami Beach have commissioned Living Seawalls, recognizing the value of a solution that aligns with sustainability goals. More significantly, the climate tech innovator has secured a $2 million contract with the U.S. Navy and is advancing projects with the Air Force, demonstrating the technology's viability for critical defense infrastructure.

The $10 million will be deployed to triple production capacity by adding more 3D-printing robots, scale up production lines, and provide the working capital needed for capital-intensive government projects. It also funds a strategic geographic expansion. Having already completed municipal projects in Miami Shores and Longboat Key, the company has now secured its first contracts in New York City, Charleston, and Nassau, with eyes on the massive coastal erosion and rail protection needs in California.

Policy, Permits, and the Path to Adoption

Technological innovation alone is rarely enough to disrupt an entrenched industry like construction. Kind Designs' rapid ascent is also a story of savvy policy engagement. In a critical development, Miami-Dade County recently updated its seawall codes to provide expedited permitting for the company's systems, dismantling a significant bureaucratic barrier that often stifles innovation.

At the state level, Governor Ron DeSantis signed SB302, legislation that directs the Florida Department of Environmental Protection to create incentives for the adoption of Living Seawalls. These policy wins are not just tailwinds; they are foundational shifts that create a favorable market for green infrastructure. By working with regulators, the company has helped pave the way for faster, broader adoption, creating a model for how public-private collaboration can accelerate climate adaptation.

“We're done building at the pace permission allows,” said Anya Freeman, the founder and CEO of Kind Designs. Her statement captures the urgency of the climate crisis and the need to move faster than traditional regulatory frameworks often permit. This proactive approach to policy is as much a part of the company's strategy as its 3D printers.

The High Stakes of a Rising Tide

Kind Designs is entering a market defined by immense need and staggering financial scale. The global coastal defense market is projected to exceed $18 billion by 2034, part of a wider marine construction sector valued at over $65 billion. For Freeman, the mission is to capture a significant piece of that market by establishing a new industrial category built on resilience.

“The seawall industry is a multi-hundred-billion-dollar market that has never had a true technology company,” she stated. “We're building one of America's most important tech companies to put resiliency on the map as the next great industrial category.”

As coastal communities from Florida to California and New York confront the accelerating impacts of climate change, the demand for effective, sustainable, and scalable solutions has never been greater. With proven technology, powerful investors, and supportive government policies, Kind Designs is no longer just pitching an idea. It is executing a plan to build a new generation of coastal infrastructure that protects America's shorelines while making them more beautiful and ecologically vibrant.