The MIT spinoff firm Tulip says it has landed $120 million in venture backing for its technology that provides artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled, connected apps for frontline workers in the manufacturing, pharmaceutical, and medical device sectors.The “series D” round was led by Mitsubishi Electric Corp., which has invested in and signed a strategic alliance agreement with Somerville, Massachusetts-based Tulip, forming a strategic commitment to overhaul digital transformation (DX) in manufacturing.Tulip says its technology is needed because manufacturers today face the dual threats of volatile supply chains and critical labor shortages. Traditional systems and paper-based workarounds are too slow and disconnected for manufacturers to react, so Tulip solves this by embedding AI into frontline operations, enabling rapid problem solving and turning complex data into insight and action, the firm says.Through the new partnership, Mitsubishi Electric will leverage Tulip’s composable platform to rapidly roll out scalable, AI-driven applications, signaling a shift away from monolithic software toward agile, human-centric innovation.“We believe that people are the most valuable asset in any operation,” Natan Linder, CEO of Tulip Interfaces Inc., said in a release. “Our partnership with Mitsubishi Electric solidifies a shared commitment to a human-first digital transformation. We are building modern, composable architectures not to automate people away, but to give them superpowers through practical use of AI. We recognize that technology must work for the operators and the engineers, not the other way around.”
