Remember the time when 3D printing was going to change the world?

Ten years ago, it promised to deliver us a future where we could fabricate anything our hearts desired, all in the comfort of our garages.

Yes, ‘twas the dawn of a new era…

A Star Trek-like utopia where we could say, “Print me sneakers,” and voilà—out come shoes that fit perfectly, look amazing, and feel like you’re walking on clouds.

Companies swarmed in to capitalize on this enthusiasm, eager to sell 3D printers.

Sure, what we got were machines that could print...

If you had the patience of a saint, the technical expertise of a NASA engineer, and the willingness to cry into your filament when your 27th attempt at printing a phone case resulted in a sad, stringy mess.

As with all great revolutions, reality hit, and it hit hard. 3D printing was nowhere near ready to deliver on the hype.

(EXCEPT, of course, if your vision of “the new industrial revolution” involves printing out tiny, plastic, wobbly Eiffel Towers.)

But something changed recently that makes me think 3D printing is nearing prime time.

Moreover, it might be time to put one in your garage.

What happened, you ask?

Two things:

1. 3D printers are using AI more than ever

2. Shapeways, once the beacon of hope for garage inventors everywhere, just declared bankruptcy.

That second one might sound weird, but let me explain.

Competition is Heating Up

Right now, with the help of AI, 3D printing machines are finally moving beyond their awkward teenage years.

Shapeways certainly had first-mover advantage… but history often reveals that this isn’t always enough.

We’re witnessing the survival of the fittest—a Darwinian evolution where only the strongest, most reliable machines survive.

And, as a result…

We’re starting to see reliable, user-friendly printers with incredible practical applications.

For years, the dream of a garage filled with 3D printed parts seemed like a joke.

But now, it’s actually feasible.

You can print everything from custom parts for your car to that drawer organizer I’ve been meaning to buy from IKEA.

And, a decade ago, you had to master the secret incantations of nozzle cleaning and bed leveling to keep your prints from looking like this…

Now, with the help of AI, you can print with industrial-grade precision, using materials (like PPA-CF) that have metal-like strength at a fraction of the weight. 

In fact, a guy recently built a custom race car using 3D printing for many of the crucial mechanical components.

Take a look, for example, at this custom mirror housing. It was printed in someone’s garage.

We’re finally at a point where you don’t have to spend countless hours tuning your printer just to get it to function.

You just have to hit print.

In short, we’re soon to enter a new golden age of garage manufacturing.

ESPECIALLY if you have basic CAD skills, though I suspect AI will soon make this easier, too.

Soon, I’m going to start comparing 3D printers for myself. I’ll be sure to report on which ones I think are best.

This is a potential side-hustle opportunity shaping up in AI…

But if you’re looking for BIG investment opportunities…

We’ve been diving even deeper….

And focusing on some infrastructure plays that could be set to go gangbusters in the coming weeks.