Hamburg, Germany, August 13, 2025
News Summary
Hamburg-based plancraft has closed a €38 million Series B led by Headline to accelerate development of AI-first, voice-enabled automation for trades. The mobile-first platform digitises quotes, time tracking, site documentation, project planning and invoicing to reduce administrative friction for small contractors. The funding brings total backing to over €50 million and will be used to build proactive AI agents, expand product features and hire product and AI specialists as plancraft scales across Europe, where it already serves more than 20,000 customers in 11 countries.
Plancraft raises €38M Series B to scale AI-first, voice-enabled automation for European trades
Plancraft, a Hamburg, Germany-based provider of a mobile-first, voice-enabled construction workflow SaaS, has closed a €38 million Series B round led by Headline, with participation from existing investors including Creandum, High‑Tech Grönderfonds (HTGF), and xdeck. The financing brings total funding to over €50 million, and the company plans to deploy the new capital to build AI‑first tools to automate routine tasks for tradespeople and to grow the team across Europe to support pan‑European expansion and product development.
Funding and growth at a glance
The funds are earmarked to accelerate the company’s mission to extend from today’s voice‑enabled workflows toward comprehensive AI automation, including the development of AI agents that proactively manage client interactions, generate tailored quotes, and optimize business operations so construction professionals can focus on craftsmanship while software handles administration.
Product, customers and geographic reach
Plancraft describes its product as a single, integrated workflow experience that digitises steps from quotes to invoicing. Key capabilities include creating quotes, time tracking and hours logging, documenting job sites and measurements, project planning, team coordination, and invoicing. The platform serves more than 20,000 customers across 11 European countries, with teams already established in Germany, Austria, the Netherlands and Italy, and a headcount surpassing 100 employees.
People and leadership
Plancraft was founded in 2020 by Julian Wiedenhaus (CEO), Alexander Noll (Chief Product Officer), and Richard Keil (co‑founder and founding engineer). Since a Series A in mid‑2024, the company has more than doubled headcount from around 40 to over 100, with additional expansion plans to hire more product and AI specialists to support broader European growth.
Market context and problems Plancraft addresses
The company positions its product within a European construction sector facing ageing demographics, skills shortages, growing bureaucracy, generational transition, and urgent climate retrofit mandates. Plancraft notes industry headwinds include a multi‑year decline in construction activity, a housing shortage (Germany is projected to complete about 175,000 dwellings in 2025 versus a target of 400,000), and a sector responsible for a substantial share of global construction CO2 emissions (40%). It also highlights small‑business dynamics, pointing to figures such as 95% of firms having fewer than 20 employees (and 94% of those in Europe having fewer than 10 employees).
Competitive positioning
In the marketplace, Plancraft positions itself against other point‑solutions by offering a truly end‑to‑end trades‑specific platform that integrates the entire workflow rather than forcing customers to juggle multiple systems.
Founders’ backgrounds and origins
The founders bring a blend of hands‑on trades exposure and software expertise: Wiedenhaus grew up in a family of tradespeople, with grandfathers who were a carpenter and a metalworker; Noll spent his youth around a carpentry business before studying civil engineering and gaining software development and consulting experience; Keil has more than 15 years of full‑stack development experience and helped turn prototypes into a working product. The idea for Plancraft emerged from a belief that existing back‑office software for trades was too complex, slow, and inflexible for day‑to‑day use on construction sites.
Earlier funding history
Earlier rounds include a seed in September 2022€2.1 million (comprising institutional funding and a small seed tranche). Reports around mid‑2024€12 million or €15 million—reflecting inconsistencies in different outlets. The current round builds on that prior equity financing to accelerate product and regional expansion.
Leadership statements and strategic outlook
Leadership frames the opportunity as transforming how blue‑collar workers interact with software. The plan is to move beyond mere digitalisation to reduce administrative burdens through voice‑first and AI automation tools, enabling trades professionals to devote more time to hands‑on craftsmanship while software manages ordering, quoting, documentation and invoicing.
About the investors
The lead investor in the Series B is Headline, with continued participation from existing backers that helped fund the company’s growth and international reach. The round is framed as leveraging strong product‑market fit and market tailwinds for AI applications in construction.
What this means for the market
With a large base of small trades businesses across Europe, Plancraft’s approach aims to scale practical AI tooling that aligns with the on‑site realities of tradeswork, enabling faster responses to customer orders and more efficient project administration. The combination of a broad customer base, a multilingual European footprint, and an expanding product roadmap positions Plancraft to push for broader adoption and deeper automation across the trades sector.
Frequently asked questions
- What is the amount of Plancraft’s latest funding round?
- €38 million Series B, with total funding now over €50 million.
- Where is Plancraft headquartered and when was it founded?
- Headquartered in Hamburg, Germany, the company was founded in 2020.
- What does Plancraft’s product do?
- It is a mobile‑first, voice‑enabled construction workflow SaaS that digitises processes from quotes to invoicing, including quotes, time tracking, site documentation, project planning, team coordination, and invoicing.
- How large is Plancraft’s customer base and geographic reach?
- The company serves more than 20,000 customers across 11 European countries.
- What are the growth and product plans for the near term?
- The funds will be used to build AI‑first tools, scale across Europe, and extend to AI automation with proactive agents, tailored quotes, and operational optimization, while hiring more product and AI specialists.
- What is known about the team’s growth and the founder team’s background?
- The headcount has grown from roughly 40 to over 100 since mid‑2024, with teams established in Germany, Austria, the Netherlands, and Italy. Founders bring deep backgrounds in trades and software development.
Key features overview
| Category | Highlights |
|---|---|
| Company | Plancraft, Hamburg, Germany; founded 2020; CEO Julian Wiedenhaus; COO/CSO Alexander Noll; Co‑founder/engineer Richard Keil |
| Funding | €38M Series B led by Headline; participation from Creandum, HTGF, xdeck; total funding > €50M |
| Product | Mobile‑first, voice‑enabled construction workflow SaaS; covers quotes to invoicing |
| Customers & Reach | 20,000+ customers in 11 countries across Europe |
| Team & Growth | 100+ employees; growth from ~40 since mid‑2024; teams in Germany, Austria, Netherlands, Italy |
| Strategic Goals | Extend to AI automation with proactive agents; quote generation and operational optimization |
| Market Context | European construction faces aging workforce, skills shortages, bureaucracy, climate retrofit mandates; sector in decline; housing shortage in places like Germany |
| Competition | Claims advantage by offering one integrated trades tool vs juggling separate systems |
Deeper Dive: News & Info About This Topic
Additional Resources
- EU-Startups (Aug 2025): €38M for plancraft
- Wikipedia: Plancraft
- Silicon Canals: plancraft secures €38M
- Google Search: plancraft €38 million
- TechFundingNews: plancraft raises €38M
- Google Scholar: plancraft construction AI
- EU-Startups (Jun 2024): plancraft secures €12M
- Encyclopedia Britannica: plancraft
- TechFundingNews: plancraft €12M from Creandum
- Google News: plancraft
