2023 was filled with excitement around the potential mergers being pursued by industry stalwart Stratasys (Nasdaq: SSYS), leading to some of the most insightful conversations imaginable at Additive Manufacturing Strategies (AMS) 2024. Things have gotten even more complex, promising that AMS 2025 will be that much more fruitful. The roster for the show, including sponsors and speakers, has filled out substantially, foretelling the most eventful AMS to date.

Given the news of this year, we’re sure to see some intense, if not divisive, dialogue from the CEOs of the firms at the heart of that news. Yoav Stern, CEO and Member of the Board at Nano Dimension (Nasdaq: NNDM), will be participating in the CEO Roundtable on February 6, moderated Troy Jensen, Managing Director at Cantor Fitzgerald, with Yoav Zeif, CEO of Stratasys; Brigitte de Vet-Veithen, CEO of Materialise; and Jeff Graves, President and CEO of 3D Systems.

Brad Kreger speaking at the AMS 2024 CEO panel. Image courtesy of 3DPrint.com/Sarah Saunders.

Meanwhile, Shai Terem, President and CEO of Markforged, will be on the Polymer Toolbelt panel and Ric Fulop, Co-founder and CEO of Desktop Metal, will be on the Metal Toolbelt panel. Altogether, we should gain insight into the larger strategy of Nano Dimension as it integrates Terem and Fulop’s companies.

The event will also be organized somewhat differently compared to previous iterations, with the focus shifting from AM as an isolated technology and sector to embracing 3D printing as part of a larger landscape. With that in mind, a February 4th session on reshoring will be kicked off with a keynote by Matthew Sermon, Executive Director for Program Executive Office for Strategic Submarines at the U.S. Navy.

This will be followed by a panel titled “Rebuilding the Industrial Base: Government and National Clusters,” with David Hampel, Head of Manufacturing Industries at Berlin Partner; Josh Dugdale, Head of AMUK; Naiara Zubizarreta, Director of Spanish Association of AM; and Chaw Sing Ho, Co-founder and CEO of the National Additive Manufacturing Innovation Cluster; moderated by the Executive Director of America Makes, John Wilczynski.

That panel will be followed by a discussion on Bridging the Public-Private Gap, with Andy Davis, Director of Government and Business Development at The Barnes Global Advisors; Neal Orringer, President of ASTRO America; and Mark Morrissette, Managing Director of North Atlantic Capital, a Stifel company.

The Reshoring session will be followed by the latest iteration of the ever-popular Venture Capital session, where some of the most successful fundraisers like Seurat, Fabric8Labs, and LightForce will share their expertise alongside Bessemer Venture Partners, AM Ventures, and others. We’ll see these funding discussions continue into the next day, when the role of private equity is discussed. And what’s been discussed so far is just a slice of the entire show.

Altogether the event promises to be a powerful one, thanks in large part to our sponsors. This includes Diamond Sponsor Stratasys, Presenting Sponsors Cantor Fitzgerald and The Barnes Global Advisors, Networking Sponsor AM Ventures, Sapphire Sponsor HP, Platinum Sponsors Ai Build, the Association for Manufacturing Technology, Berlin Partner, Dyndrite, EOS, and Würth Additive Group.

Attendees are encouraged to take advantage of early bird registration, which ends October 23, 2024. Registering early not only guarantees participation at a reduced rate but also provides access to networking receptions, keynotes, and a series of pivotal discussions that will shape the future of AM.