I noticed HP is offering a text-to-3D service. Could this work?
AI-generated 3D models are rapidly emerging, with seemingly new ventures launching monthly. I’ve tried quite a few of them, and while they are quite astonishing — in that they can create 3D models from thin air and a prompt — the results are often quite poor.
It often takes multiple attempts to get something slightly close to what you want. Usually, there are some surface issues, but for casual use for a quickie 3D model, they are somewhat useful.
You absolutely cannot (yet) use them to generate mechanical parts that require precise dimensions. There just isn’t that level of control over the geometry.
While that capability might eventually emerge, it isn’t there now. In the future, someone might train an AI model focusing on part geometry and perhaps even accept as input some dimensional constraints.
This is why I was a bit confused when I saw that HP had launched an AI text-to-3D service. As a manufacturer of industrial 3D printing equipment that is typically used for volume production of end-use parts, could their customers use this service? Has HP solved the geometry issues with text-to-3D services?
It turns out, no, they haven’t. While I haven’t seen a live demo of the service yet, it’s pretty clear from the description that HP’s service is little different from any of the other text-to-3D services.
In fact, HP’s description page seems to admit this, as it says:
“Currently, 0% of functional parts are designed by AI. However, HP believes that in the next two years, the adoption of AI-designed functional parts will grow exponentially. This presents a unique opportunity for customers to speed up the adoption of AI in designing functional parts, enhancing efficiency and innovation in their workflows.”
Their video shows the generation of organic elements, rather than truly functional parts.
It seems that a feature of HP’s new tool is that you can integrate existing CAD designs with AI-generated output. For example, you could add a stylish organic shape to a surface. That’s somewhat useful.
However, it’s clear there is a long way to go yet. HP is simply setting up an opportunity for their customers to get their feet wet in the AI world. For many corporate customers, it might be challenging to do so: sometimes the use of weird startup company AI services might not get past the IT department. Here, HP provides a way for a service from a company perceived as reliable (HP) to be used.
This is a smart move by HP, even though the fruits of this strategy won’t be visible for quite some time yet.
Via HP
