This Week in Charts 7-25-22
This article is a transcript of a Griffin video production This Week in Charts, which can be found on Youtube.
With heat waves hitting Western Europe and temperatures spiking here in Southern California, it is obvious that here, at the end of July, summer has finally activated. We’re going to bring the heat with another look at the information passing through my network. In the news today we start with:
Corporate Charts:
1. Technology investment by fashion companies;
2. Warnings signs for European consumers;
3. Recent statistics on the global economic outlook, from the consumer’s standpoint.
3D Printing News:
1. New waste reduction in metal printing;
2. Collaboration to develop 3D printed pharmaceuticals;
3. Some speculation about where 3D printing fits into the metaverse.
Financial Technology:
1. Telecommunications as a service;
2. Success during a recession;
3. Two updates on Latin American finance operations.
With that, we’ll dive in!
Corporate Charts
Fashion Investment
Fashion companies believe technology could create a competitive edge. Over the next decade, the industry average technology investment is expected to double, from just over 1.5 percent of revenues in 2022 to between 3.0 and 3.5 percent in 2030. Of particular interest to this show’s producers is the possible integration of 3D scanning and the development of the augmented or virtual reality shopping experience. What do you think that could look like?
3D Printing News
Metal Printing Waste Reduction
It’s no secret that powder bed fusion, one popular form of metal 3D printing, produces environmental pollution from powder condensate. To solve this issue, The Additive Manufacturing Green Trade Association, or AMGTA, recently released an outline for a new method that would render the material safe for transport and recycling. Partnership with additive systems designer Sintavia and materials developer KBM has produced a resin that turns the waste into an easily transportable, non-hazardous mixture. Further, the product contributes to a circular economy, improving the powder condensate’s recyclability. Currently pending patent, Sintavia plans to make the resin available to the industry soon.
3D Printed Pharmaceuticals
A recent partnership between Triastek and Eli Lilly has produced a collaboration for research into new applications of 3D printed pharmaceuticals. The venture will develop in the space of 3D printed, time-released, orally administered drugs using Triasek’s melt extrusion deposition method or MED. The two primary products, T19 and T20, provide treatment for rheumatoid arthritis and cardiovascular clotting respectively. Reportedly, the idea behind both is to capitalize on the competitive advantage of additive manufacturing to produce shapes unachievable by conventional means.
Layered Reality Applications
In the opinion of the show’s producers, the Metaverse is one of the single most developmentally-confusing and opportunity-filled concepts to come out of the Internet. I’m not going to explain the concept here so if you need a brief, check the link in the description. One of the greatest questions we’ve heard is “how does 3D printing fit into the growth of metaverse usage?” My past speculation has supposed that as metaverse inundation occurs, the necessity of 3D printing will go down, as physical artifacts have no place in the layered reality, whereas accompanying technologies like 3D scanning and reconstruction could be useful. Big picture, however, we see a couple of applications that tap into additive manufacturing’s core competitive advantages. One such application is personal headsets or hand-held controllers, whose designs could be modularized by the distributor and customized by the user, requiring only a small chip or device inserted after fabrication for use in the metaverse. Other ideas like heal management through complex designs and user-generated content through LIDAR scanning are in the works as well. On the whole, the producers are somewhat skeptical about the metaverse, but enough money and effort are going into it by large developers that it would be unwise for the additive industry to look the other way. What do you think are key applications for 3D printing here?
Financial Technology
Telecommunications as a Service
With the Mobile Virtual Network Operators market expected to reach nearly $125 billion by 2028, leaders believe that the “telecommunications as a service”, or TaaS, the business model is approaching great opportunity. In simple terms, TaaS allows any business to function as a mobile operator without the costs and complexities associated with traditional telecom operators. Cutting-edge technologies such as the Internet of Things and artificial intelligence, coupled with an unceasing appetite for faster internet connections for activities like streaming and gaming, will increase the demand for reliable and cost-effective wireless networks. The producers find it hard to argue otherwise, and continually investigate related opportunities.
Success During Recession
Our next story examines ten successful startups founded during the 2008 Great Recession. For you entrepreneurs out there, heed the words of Credit Karma founder Ken Lin when he shares that there is “never a perfect time to start a company”, and it’s important to “allocate resources” from the outset. Along with Credit Karma, notable organizations founded during the 2008 crisis include WhatsApp, Venmo, Groupon, Instagram, Uber, Pinterest, Slack, Square, Google Ventures, and data warehousing platform Cloudera. As Warren Buffet has quoted, “Be fearful when the market is confident, and confident when the market is fearful.”
Latin American Financings
The producers of this show have always had a focus on developing markets in Central and South America. They represent areas which are fast adopting powerful financial technologies and could ultimately see integration with the American system. In the news today, Brazilian secured lending platform Creditas has announced expansion, buying the banking license of Andorra’s Banco Andbank, enabling deposit acceptance. Along with the purchase of Kzas, a mortgage marketplace, CEO Sergio Furio points to this new influx of deposits as a point of confidence in their ability to continue fast growth.
Next we look to Argentina, whose online marketplace MercadoLibro has received a private financing line of $233 million US dollars from banking giant Goldman Sachs to expand credit offerings in Brazil and Mexico. Through its lending unit Mercado Credito, the company intends to increase its loan offers to individuals and SME’s. This is the second line of credit MercadoLibro has solicited from the American banker, following last year’s funding of $485 million.
That’s the news our producers have for us today. If you are keen on any of these topics, let us know in the comments and we’ll continue to bring you these kinds of stories. Make sure to like, subscribe, and turn on those notifications to keep up with the news, brought toy each week on This Week in Charts.
~ fín ~
