Enterprise

Toronto Machine Builder Brings 1:1-Scale Augmented Reality to Its CNC Line

miniMonster Automation released an iPhone and Android app on October 15 that lets buyers place a full-size version of its lemontart CNC machining centers in their workspace before purchasing.

Mainstay Communications Team · November 6, 2026 · 3 min read

Toronto Machine Builder Brings 1:1-Scale Augmented Reality to Its CNC Line

In brief

Toronto-based miniMonster Automation and Jaffrey, New Hampshire XR studio Shivoo Studios announced a 1:1-scale augmented reality experience for the lemontart CNC line on October 15, 2026. The app runs on iOS and Android, lets buyers spatially place either of the company's 2 machining center models at true scale, and enables component-level inspection before the machine ships. It's early evidence that smaller machine builders are beginning to invest in life-size AR as a standard pre-sale tool.

The Launch

miniMonster Automation builds compact vertical CNC machining center kits in Toronto. Its lemontart line includes 2 models: the 33metal, with kits starting at $4,539 CAD ($3,249 USD), and the 24pico, starting at $3,699 CAD ($2,499 USD). A +1 Harmonic Rotary Axis accessory starts at $2,299 CAD ($1,650 USD).

The AR experience, developed by Shivoo Studios, covers both machines and the rotary axis. A buyer opens the app, selects a model, and places it at full scale in a live camera view of their actual space.

What the Experience Shows

Beyond placement, the app lets buyers explore internal components: C5 precision-ground ballscrews, high-preload linear guide rails, and spindle clamps. Users can also configure optional attachments, including automatic tool changers, workholding plates, and fourth-axis rotary accessories, and see how each configuration looks at life size in their own shop.

That level of configurability addresses a real friction point in remote machine sales. "Machinery can be difficult to evaluate remotely, particularly when customers need to understand how it will work within their own space," said Terence Kreuger, CEO of miniMonster Automation. "This gives them a way to explore the machine at full scale, compare configurations, and better understand what they're purchasing before it arrives."

Shivoo Studios' Role

Shivoo Studios built the experience. The Jaffrey, New Hampshire studio specializes in AR, VR, mixed reality, real-time 3D, digital twins, and simulations for industrial, healthcare, wellness, consumer, and entertainment clients.

Sterling Youngman, CEO of Shivoo Studios, described the core value: "For complex physical products, seeing something at scale changes the conversation. Augmented reality gives buyers a way to understand how a machine fits into the real environment where it will be used, instead of relying solely on photographs, video, or specifications."

Shivoo Studios relaunched its own website in late September 2026 to demonstrate its capabilities interactively, including a spatial portfolio of AR, digital twin, and simulation work. The miniMonster experience is among the studio's industrial deployments.

The Industry Signal

miniMonster is a small manufacturer by any standard. It sells kit-form machining centers in the low thousands of dollars and runs community support through a Discord channel. Committing to a purpose-built AR experience developed by an outside XR studio represents a meaningful bet on spatial commerce at the lower end of the industrial equipment market.

Life-size AR previews for heavy equipment have appeared at trade shows and in enterprise OEM demos, but dedicated apps for smaller CNC builders aren't common. Whether this model, a small machine builder partnering with a boutique XR studio to ship a standalone spatial experience, becomes more typical is an open question. Kreuger's framing suggests the economics made sense: for a customer making a multi-thousand-dollar remote purchase, seeing the machine at full scale in their own space changes the evaluation.

Sources

Companies mentioned

Mainstay Digital · Spatial and 3D visualization for industrial companies

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