It looks like Desktop Metal has arisen.
The company’s outcome has been in considerable threat for some time after a series of corporate maneuvers.
Launching some years ago as a high-flying startup, the company provided a then-low-cost alternative to the expensive LPBF metal 3D printing technology of the day. The interest was large, and the company’s valuation soared at one point to an incredible US$5B.
That didn’t last, as the technology wasn’t quite perfected, and similar competitive technologies emerged on the market. Like many high-profile startups of that time, their valuation progressively dipped down to around US$100M.
The company’s fate was in the balance, and then came along Nano Dimension. That company’s prior management had a questionable strategy of acquisition and made an offer to acquire Desktop Metal outright. However, before the deal closed, Nano Dimension shareholders held a revolt and changed the company management. The new management had no interest in Desktop Metal or most of the other acquisitions, as that was one of the primary reasons for the revolt: they believed Nano Dimension’s money could have been spent in better ways.
They appeared to delay the Desktop Metal acquisition, but Desktop Metal filed a lawsuit against Nano Dimension for not closing the deal. A court quickly agreed, and Nano Dimension was forced to complete the acquisition of a company they really didn’t want. Shortly thereafter, Nano Dimension let Desktop Metal fall into bankruptcy.
Since then, Nano Dimension has been divesting of various assets that had been acquired by the previous regime, and one of them is Desktop Metal.
In a press release this week, “Arc Impact Acquisition Corporation” announced it had “acquired selected assets of Desktop Metal, Inc. out of Chapter 11”. Arc Impact is a Public Benefit Corporation, meaning it is a for-profit entity, but with intentions on providing positive social or environmental impact. They are only two years old. New CEO Tom Nogueira explained:
“I’m pleased to introduce myself as the new Chief Executive Officer of Desktop Metal — an Arc company. With more than two decades of experience leading technology, operations, and customer-focused teams across industrial and service sectors, I’m honored to join this next chapter of innovation and service at Desktop Metal.
Under new ownership by Arc, we are investing with urgency in the future of this business — from advancing our binder jetting and polymer platforms to elevating the quality of customer support you receive every day.”
Nogueira has been with Desktop Metal for over eight years in a series of senior roles, most recently as Chief Operating Officer. He should know quite well what’s going on at the company.
But what will the “new” Desktop Metal do? The previous incarnation clearly did not have a winning hand, which ultimately resulted in bankruptcy. What could be done with the assets to turn a profit?
Their press release explains their strategy:
“Under new ownership, the company’s mission is restoring American and domestic manufacturing capacity—from defense, automotive, and aerospace parts to high-performance medical and energy components—by combining binder-jet metal and ceramic printing, production-grade polymer platforms, and AI-assisted materials discovery into a unified platform built for speed, cost efficiency, and domestic resiliency.
Arc Impact will focus on programs where domestic, scalable manufacturing is essential to economic competitiveness and national security—including heavy rare-earth–free permanent magnets, sodium-ion solid-state battery components, solid-state transformer parts for AI data centers and grid modernization, and other high-consequence applications.”
I’m a bit skeptical about unifying all those technologies, as that seems to be a rather large project. On the other hand, focusing on very specific applications is likely a successful strategy. In my experience, the 3D print companies that win always enable customer applications — because that’s what customers actually want. They want output, not equipment.
Finally, they say that they will continue to provide some level of support to existing Desktop Metal customers, and look forward to continuing a number of military-related projects.
Time will tell whether the new ownership will be successful. However, one thing we do know is that there is more competition than ever in the rapidly consolidating 3D printer market.
Via PRNewswire and Desktop Metal
