PTC announced at the Reindustrialize Summit 2025 a new Aerospace & Defense (A&D) Startup Program to empower early and growth-stage startups with leading product development tools to help them bring new products and innovations to market faster. To eligible startups, the program offers free access to PTC’s software, including its Creo+® software-as-a-service (SaaS) computer-aided design (CAD) solution, Onshape® cloud-native computer-aided design (CAD) and product data management (PDM) platform, Codebeamer+™ application lifecycle management (ALM) solution, as well as a startup package for its Arena® product lifecycle management (PLM) and quality management system (QMS) solution.
As aerospace and defense modernization accelerates across all five domains – sea, air, land, space, and cyber – new technologies emerge, and global threats evolve. The industry is under pressure to move faster, integrate complex systems more effectively, and deliver mission-critical solutions with greater agility. PTC’s A&D Startup Program addresses these priorities head-on, helping fuel faster and more innovative product development for startups.
Startups can access Creo+, known for its advanced modeling capabilities and support for complex assemblies, as well as Onshape, a cloud-native CAD platform with built-in PDM and real-time collaboration, ideal for agile teams with minimal IT overhead. Access to Onshape includes Onshape Government, designed specifically to help meet compliance needs, like ITAR and EAR, for U.S. federal and state agencies, defense contractors, and organizations working on regulated projects. Participants can also leverage Codebeamer+, known for its support for agile development with full requirements and test management, and end-to-end traceability, as well as Arena, a cloud-native PLM and QMS platform, ideal for enabling compliance and accelerating product development at scale.
Eligible startups can participate in the program for multiple years to help support growth toward key funding and revenue milestones. In addition to the free software, they will gain access to PTC’s ecosystem of venture capitalists, incubators, technology partners, and fellow innovators, plus opportunities for mentorship, exposure, and industry engagement.
“Aerospace and defense startups are tackling some of the world’s toughest engineering challenges, and they need tools that help them get ahead," said David Katzman, General Manager of Arena and Onshape, PTC. "Through this program, we’re equipping them with PTC’s industry-leading solutions and support from day one so they can move fast, meet compliance demands, and stay focused on building what’s next.”
"Developing our own solutions demands precision and dependable tools at every stage,” said Mariarosa Argentiero, Chief Commercial Officer of ARCA Dynamics. “Creo helps us improve our production chain and accelerate the delivery of our products. It’s especially powerful for startups because it delivers the advanced capabilities needed for production without requiring additional improvements or add-ons."
“Designing next-generation spacecraft requires tools that are as agile and forward-looking as the missions we’re building,” said Ben Schleuniger, CEO and Co-Founder of Orbital Operations. “We adopted Onshape through PTC's A&D Startup Program, giving us a fast, secure foundation to collaborate and iterate from day one. As our needs expanded, the Onshape Government offering enabled us to meet compliance requirements without slowing down. We’ve truly appreciated PTC’s support and collaboration every step of the way.”
