Pool tooling costs with similar prototypes to slash setup fees by 70%.
Small businesses can't afford the high upfront tooling costs and factory setup fees required to scale hardware prototypes to production.
ToolPool lets small businesses join or create pools for identical tooling needs, sharing upfront costs across projects. Upload your prototype, find matches for shared molds/dies, and produce at fraction of solo costs. Transparent splits and escrow ensure fair scaling to production.
Small businesses developing hardware prototypes and seeking to scale to mass production
Blockchain-inspired escrow for cost pooling, guaranteeing contributions before production starts.
supportive
Search for matching prototypes to join pools.
Start a new pool for your specs.
Secure pooled funds via Stripe escrow.
Auto-calculate shares based on volume.
Group orders to single factory.
In-app messaging for pool members.
Track pool savings and status.
AI similarity scoring.
| Column | Type | Nullable |
|---|---|---|
| id | uuid | No |
| text | No | |
| name | text | Yes |
| created_at | timestamp | No |
| Column | Type | Nullable |
|---|---|---|
| id | uuid | No |
| creator_id | uuid | No |
| prototype_specs | text | No |
| target_contributions | int | No |
| status | text | No |
| created_at | timestamp | No |
Relationships:
| Column | Type | Nullable |
|---|---|---|
| id | uuid | No |
| pool_id | uuid | No |
| user_id | uuid | No |
| contribution_amount | int | No |
| units_ordered | int | No |
Relationships:
| Column | Type | Nullable |
|---|---|---|
| id | uuid | No |
| user_id | uuid | No |
| file_url | text | No |
| specs_hash | text | No |
Relationships:
/api/poolsSearch pools by specs
/api/poolsCreate new pool
/api/pool_members/:poolId/joinJoin pool with contribution
/api/pools/:id/statusGet pool status and splits
/api/production/:poolId/launchLaunch pooled production
No creation
10 pools/month
None
| Month | Users | Conversion | MRR | ARR |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month 1 | 80 | 3% | $72 | $864 |
| Month 6 | 700 | 6% | $1,260 | $15,120 |
Find or start pools to divide factory setup fees dramatically.
Share in Maker Faire forums and LinkedIn hardware groups offering free pool creation for first users. Email 30 recent Kickstarter hardware backers proposing pool matches. Run $100 Twitter ad targeting 'hardware prototype tooling'.
Speed
No sharing model
Pooled upfronts for custom tooling
Network
Individual quotes only
Collaborative pooling
Data on prototype similarities builds better matching over time.
Explosion of similar designs from AI generators creates natural pooling opportunities.
Pools don't fill
Minimum viable pools + incentives
Escrow disputes
Clear TOS + arbitration
IP sharing concerns
NDAs in pools
Success: 80% positive
Success: 2 pools funded
Success: 20% referral rate
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