A recent study by Professor Silvia Massini and Eugene D. Hahn examines the patterns of early financial investment in the 3D printing industry. The paper, published in the Journal of International Management, analyses both cross-border and domestic investments in this emerging technology sector.
The researchers analysed a data set of 500 corporate investments. Their hypothesis: 3D printing investments are increasingly flowing into countries with high levels of innovation, strong human capital skills and higher wage levels.
The results partially confirm this assumption. Larger investments do indeed favour companies in high-wage countries and regions with high innovative strength. This suggests that investors favour locations that already have an established 3D printing ecosystem.
The findings offer important pointers for companies and political decision-makers. They show that the development of an innovative environment and the promotion of skilled labour are key to attracting investment in pioneering technologies.
The authors emphasise that further research is needed to better understand the complex relationships between investment and the development of technology ecosystems. In particular, the role of factors such as regulation, infrastructure and clusters should be analysed in more detail.
Further details can be found in the study “Cross-border and domestic early-stage financial investment in 3D printing: An empirical perspective on drivers and locations“.
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