What is the future of 3D printing?

3D printing becomes one of the most disruptive manufacturing technologies of the century. 3D printing, also called additive manufacturing, builds an object layer by layer from a digital file instead of cutting it from a block or molding it in a factory. I predict that as costs fall and capability rises, production moves closer to consumers, cutting waste, inventory, and transport. SpaceX and Relativity already print rocket engines, and dentists print your crown while you wait. The factory shrinks and multiplies. Companies stop shipping finished goods across oceans and start shipping designs, printing on demand near the customer. Manufacturing comes home.