Kupros Launches Cu29 V2, a Conductive Filament That Prints Real Electronics on Desktop FDM

Conductive 3D printing filaments have existed for years, but most of them are barely conductive. They work for simple circuits and LED traces, but they fail when you ask them to carry real power. Kupros, an Indiana-based startup, is trying to change that with Cu29 V2, a second-generation all-metal conductive filament that the company says is already sold out.

Cu29 is not a polymer loaded with carbon or copper powder. It is an all-metal material with a published resistivity of 1.226 x 10^-5 ohm-centimeters. That is more than 80 times the conductivity of leading polymer-based conductive filaments. The company has tested it at up to 12.5 kilovolts, which opens the door to high-voltage applications that most desktop 3D printing materials cannot touch.

From Prototype to Production

The first version of Cu29 proved the concept. The second version is about workflow. Kupros spent a year printing, breaking parts, rebuilding them, and listening to early adopters. The result is a filament that prints more consistently, extrudes more reliably, and scales better for production runs.

The initial batch of Cu29 V2 was 90 kilograms. Kupros says that inventory is already gone. The company is now taking orders for the next production run, with no official launch date yet.

Embedded Electronics, Not Just Traces

Kupros is also working on a patent-pending process that goes beyond printing conductive lines. The goal is to embed electronic components directly into FDM parts during a standard print. Conformal antennas, strain-gauge sensors, grounding structures, and solderable interfaces are all in scope.

If the process works as described, the printer stops being only a mechanical manufacturing system. It becomes an electronics manufacturing platform. Kupros has already sent Cu29-enabled sensor test articles to Oak Ridge National Laboratory for independent evaluation.

Who Is This For?

Cu29 V2 prints on standard FDM and FFF machines, from sub-$400 desktop printers to industrial systems. That is the whole pitch: you do not need a specialized metal 3D printer to use it. Engineers, researchers, and defense teams are the primary early adopters, but the material is accessible enough that advanced makers can order it directly.

The price and availability details are still sparse. Cu29 V2 is not a cheap drop-in replacement for PLA, and the printing requirements are stricter. Bed temperature, extrusion temperature, and cooling all need tuning. But for anyone who needs power-capable conductive traces in a printed part, there is no direct alternative at this price tier.

The Bigger Picture

Copper is expensive and in high demand. Additive manufacturing that can shape copper into functional parts without subtractive waste or long lead times is a genuine economic lever. Desktop FDM is the lowest-cost entry point into that market. If Kupros can make Cu29 reliable enough for production use, it could reshape how small batches of electronic housings, connectors, and sensor bodies are made.

The sold-out first batch suggests the market is there. The question now is whether the company can scale supply without losing the material consistency that made Cu29 V2 attractive in the first place.