In this clip, Ric explains how the challenges faced in making a metal 3D printing system differed from those of a typical technology startup:

Ric Fulop
CEO and Co-Founder, Desktop Metal 

Ric Fulop is the CEO and co-founder of Desktop Metal, a company committed to accelerating the transformation of manufacturing with end-to-end metal 3D printing solutions. Founded in 2015 by leaders in advanced manufacturing, materials science, and robotics, the company is addressing the unmet challenges of speed, cost, and quality to make metal 3D printing an essential tool for engineers and manufacturers around the world.

Prior to founding Desktop Metal in October 2015, Ric was a General Partner at North Bridge, a VC fund with $3 billion under management, for five years following a fifteen-year career as an entrepreneur. Fulop is the founder of six technology companies, including A123 Systems, Boston’s largest IPO in the past decade and one of the world’s largest automotive lithium ion suppliers with revenue exceeding $500M in 2016. At North Bridge, Ric led the software and 3D investing practices, and was an early stage investor and board member in Dyn (acquired by Oracle for $600 million), Onshape, MarkForged, Salsify, Lytro and Gridco.

For our full interview with Ric, download the Innovation Navigation podcast.