Metal 3D printing technology company Desktop Metal is set to go public via an SPAC deal, following the trend recently seen by other big names in tech.
Desktop Metal will list through an agreement with Trine Acquisition Corp, which values the company at $2.5 billion.
Virgin Galactic and Nikola Motor Company are just a few of the other businesses to choose the special-purpose acquisition companies — or SPAC — route.
"It's a trend because it's a more efficient process to go public," Ric Fulop, co-founder and CEO of Desktop Metal, told Cheddar Wednesday. "It doesn't actually make it easier. It's just quite a bit of work actually. You still have to be a public-ready business and have all of the things that you need to do to go public. But the reason why it's a trend is because the quality of the sponsors has increased dramatically."
According to Desktop Metal, the additive manufacturing industry is expected to grow from $12 billion to $146 billion this decade, shifting from prototyping to mass production.
Fulop said consumers are unlikely to encounter actual products made by Desktop Metal, but instead products made with Desktop Metal's 3D printed parts.
"It's a very horizontal technology that's very much used for lots of different applications from rapid parts, to automotive, consumer electronics, space. It's at the heart of everything we're doing in next generation hardware," Fulop said.
"And the focus of Desktop Metal, in particular, is mass production. There is a prior generation of additive systems, but they are dramatically slower. The technology that we've brought to the market is 100 times faster than legacy systems, and that's what differentiates our technology."
The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2020. Desktop Metal will use the ticker symbol $DM when it makes its official debut on the New York Stock Exchange.
Nestlé has dismissed its CEO Laurent Freixe after an investigation into an undisclosed relationship with a direct subordinate. The company announced on Monday that the dismissal was effective immediately. An investigation found that Freixe violated Nestlé’s code of conduct. He had been CEO for a year. Philipp Navratil, a longtime Nestlé executive, will replace him. Chairman Paul Bulcke stated that the decision was necessary to uphold the company’s values and governance. Navratil began his career with Nestlé in 2001 and has held various roles, including CEO of Nestlé's Nespresso division since 2024.
Kraft Heinz is splitting into two companies a decade after they joined in a massive merger that created one of the biggest food companies on the planet. One of the companies will include brands such as Heinz, Philadelphia cream cheese and Kraft Mac & Cheese. The other will include brands like Oscar Mayer, Kraft Singles and Lunchables. When the company formed in 2015 it wanted to capitalize on its massive scale, but shifting tastes complicated those plans, with households seeking to introduce healthier options at the table. Kraft Heinz's net revenue has fallen every year since 2020.
About 780,000 pressure washers sold at retailers like Home Depot are being recalled across the U.S. and Canada, due to a projectile hazard that has resulted in fractures and other injuries among some consumers.
