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.
President Donald Trump has fired one of two Democratic members of the U.S. Surface Transportation Board to break a 2-2 tie ahead of the board considering the largest railroad merger ever proposed.
Ford is recalling more than 355,000 of its pickup trucks across the U.S. because of an instrument panel display failure that’s resulted in critical information, like warning lights and vehicle speed, not showing up on the dashboard.
Nvidia reported a 56% increase in second-quarter revenue and a 59% rise in net income compared to a year ago.
The Rev. Al Sharpton is set to lead a protest march on Wall Street to urge corporate America to resist the Trump administration’s campaign to roll back diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. The New York civil rights leader will join clergy, labor and community leaders Thursday in a demonstration through Manhattan’s Financial District that’s timed with the anniversary of the Civil Rights-era March on Washington in 1963. Sharpton called DEI the “civil rights fight of our generation." He and other Black leaders have called for boycotting American retailers that scaled backed policies and programs aimed at bolstering diversity and reducing discrimination in their ranks.
President Donald Trump's administration last month awarded a $1.2 billion contract to build and operate what's expected to become the nation’s largest immigration detention complex to a tiny Virginia firm with no experience running correction facilities.
Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos claims audiences don't want to watch Netflix movies in theaters, but that seems not to be the case recently.
Chipmaker Nvidia is poised to release a quarterly report that could provide a better sense of whether the stock market has been riding an overhyped artificial intelligence bubble or is being propelled by a technological boom that’s still gathering momentum.
Cracker Barrel said late Tuesday it’s returning to its old logo after critics — including President Donald Trump — protested the company’s plan to modernize.
Low-value imports are losing their duty-free status in the U.S. this week as part of President Donald Trump's agenda for making the nation less dependent on foreign goods. A widely used customs exemption for international shipments worth $800 or less is set to end starting on Friday. Trump already ended the “de minimis” rule for inexpensive items sent from China and Hong Kong, but having to pay import taxes on small parcels from everywhere else likely will be a big change for some small businesses and online shoppers. Purchases that previously entered the U.S. without needing to clear customs will be subject to the origin country’s tariff rate, which can range from 10% to 50%.
Southwest Airlines will soon require plus-size travelers to pay for an extra seat in advance if they can't fit within the armrests of one seat. This change is part of several updates the airline is making. The new rule starts on Jan. 27, the same day Southwest begins assigning seats. Currently, plus-size passengers can pay for an extra seat in advance and later get a refund, or request a free extra seat at the airport. Under the new policy, refunds are still possible but not guaranteed. Southwest said in a statement it is updating policies to prepare for assigned seating next year.
