Aug 14, 2025 All content of this newsletter is for entertainment purposes and not investment or medical advice. To subscribe to this newsletter via email for free, click here. Alternatively, we also have an archive here. This edition includes insights, news, events, and content recommendations.
“Your title makes you a manager, your people make you a leader.“ – Bill Campbell
Hi there,
It is now past midsummer, but to many in biotech, medtech, and even the healthcare industry, it feels a bit chilly. Massive layoffs, tariff threats, regulatory chaos in the US, and a pessimistic view from Wall Street are creating a “winter” in the biopharma and medtech sectors. Everyone rushes to insert “AI” into their pitch deck.
So yes, you are Right, all the money is chasing “AI”, and here are a few reports that confirm your intuition. While fundraising might be a little harder right now, there were quite a few bright spots last month, both in entrepreneurial and regulatory spaces:
- Nanochon Announces Health Canada Approval for First in Human Investigation
- On July 31st, 2025, Brazil officially banned the use of animals in the testing of cosmetics. The official legislative document is here. Now, more than 45 countries (including the United States) are in this group.
- Carlsmed, the first Pitch3D company, goes public. See S-1 breakdown here by Maxim Owen. I also 100% agree with his assessment on the leadership of the company, “Carlsmed has run the gauntlet from inception to filing for IPO in 7 years. It has ramped revenue from the start of commercialization to almost $50 million run-rate revenue in under 4 years. This is due in very large part to the exemplary leadership of co-founder & CEO Mike (Cordonnier) and his team.” This is excellent news amid this “winter”. We need more public companies with transparency and fewer private “Zombie Unicorns“.
- Still plenty of new jobs. See our latest job board updates.
Until next time,
Jenny Chen
3DHEALS Events
You can find all of our past and upcoming events here.
August 14th – 3D Printed Drugs (This Thursday!)
September 4th – Advanced Biomaterials
October 30th – Prosthetics and Orthotics
November 6th – Pediatric Cardiology
Event Recap: The Bioprinting Frontier
At our latest 3DHEALS event, we had the opportunity to catch up with four incredible leaders in the field to discuss the jaw-dropping technology they have been developing. In this excellent write-up by Peter Hsu, you can read about what’s presented by a group of international experts, watch YouTube clips/highlights, and listen to our podcast version of the event. You can also watch the event on-demand at 3DHEALS Courses now.
“Bioprinting has undoubtedly reached new heights in the last few years. Still, several exciting challenges remain, especially in the need to create personalized tissue models, determine the right cellular cues to induce tissue and blood vessel self-assembly, and develop platforms that anyone can use to print at scale and incredible speeds. The energy of early-stage startups like VoxCell BioInnovation and the clinical trials that are within reach for FluidForm Bio is keeping the adrenaline levels of the field high. The versatility and ease of use of Readily3D and Puredyne printers are ushering in a new era, making 3D bioprinting a more accessible and feasible option for researchers and engineers worldwide. We’re excited to see what’s next, and we hope you are, too. Stay up-to-date with what’s to come by subscribing to the 3DHEALS newsletter and joining our events live.”
Feel free to apply to be a speaker.
Please make sure you’re subscribed to our event newsletter!
Podcasts
Episode 88 of The Lattice (3DHEALS podcast), Dr. Bill Oxley: Bill, a Cambridge‑trained veterinary orthopaedic specialist and founder of Vet3D, shares how a decade of experience with over 4,000 surgical cases and 20 peer‑reviewed publications catalyzed his shift from conventional 2D planning to game‑changing 3D virtual surgical planning and patient‑specific 3D‑printed guides. “Think before you print” is his motto.
Ken Hersh – Co-Founder, NGP Energy Capital Management – The Godfather of Energy Private Equity. What is more critical to success than technology? Identify the best people and work well with them. Many legendary businesspeople, including Warren Buffett and Charlie Munger, Bill Campbell, and Ken Hersch, recount similar business stories. Here is a great companion blog post.
Invest like The Best with Bill Gurley: the Gift and The Curse of Staying Private. You will hear more about why it is not good to have too many Zombie Unicorns, how it got here, and what we could do next.
News & Thoughts
🧠🔬 Dual-light 3D printing is revolutionizing medical devices!
A new method fuses hard and soft plastics in a single print—opening doors for flexible, patient-specific tools and implants. 🚀🖨️
🩺✨ EFHAM 2025 offered a reality check for healthcare 3D printing
The event highlighted the gap between hype and real-world adoption. Key takeaway: Collaboration and clinical validation are critical to scaling impact. 🧠🏥
🐾🖨️ 3D-printed biomimetic scaffolds show promise for repairing canine bone defects
Combining bioresorbable materials with smart design leads to faster healing. 🦴🐶
🧬 Breakthrough in personalized bone repair
Researchers developed a patient-specific, 3D-printed composite scaffold combining PEEK and β-TCP for enhanced bone regeneration. 🦴🔥
📊 Materialise Q2 2025: Strong medical segment offsets industrial slowdown
Strategic acquisitions may be on the horizon as the company leans into high-impact healthcare applications. 🏥📈
🧲🖨️ Scientists unveil pixel-scale magnetic programming to fabricate soft, mini magnetic robots for targeted drug delivery
Multimode, multifunction, and biocompatible robots for drug delivery in the GI and urinary systems. 💊🤖
How does a magnetic robot work?
These robots use a new 3D printing technique to program magnetic directions at the pixel scale during fabrication, allowing for programmable motion such as rolling, crawling, swimming, and twisting—enabling precise navigation and targeted therapy delivery.
💊🖨️ CurifyLabs is transforming personalized medicine with automated 3D printing of pharmaceuticals
Customized treatments are becoming a clinical reality—faster, precise, and patient-specific. 🧬🏥
🧠🖨️ Engineers & anesthesiologists co-developed a low-cost 3D-printed videolaryngoscope—VLG3DUFF
Designed to improve intubation success, especially in resource-limited settings. Created during COVID-19, tested for strength and realism. 💡🌍
🧫🖨️ 3D printing is lowering barriers for Organ-On-Chip innovation
Researchers show how commercial printers and off-the-shelf resins can streamline the fabrication of microfluidic devices for cell cultures. 🧬💡
🦴🖨️ Can 3D printing improve pre-op planning for complex tibial plateau fractures?
A new study says yes—especially for trainees. 3D models boosted confidence, improved implant pre-selection, and changed plans in 36% of cases. 🩺🔍
“The use of 3D printed fracture models showed a trend toward higher interrater reliability of patient positioning and surgical approach for medical students and surgical residents, while experienced surgeons show less benefit.”
🦷🚀 Align Technology is scaling up the future of orthodontics
Srini Kaza shares how 3D printing is transforming production of custom clear aligners—faster, smarter, and at scale. 🖨️🪥
💼🖨️ TRUMPF’s metal 3D printing division acquired by a private equity firm
The goal: expand solutions across the full supply chain. Consolidation meets innovation. ⚙️📈
Career
- Updated Job Board.
- Will you participate in a 3DHEALS-hosted Job Fair? Please complete this five-question survey.
Books
The best coaches are often Free but hard to access. Why? Because a good relationship takes TWO parties. A good coach requires a coachable, worthy, and suitable coachee. Bill Campbell is well-known for his lifelong friendship with Steve Jobs, who could rarely be perceived as “coachable”. Yet, Bill batted for Steve on several key occasions and served as the quiet coach for Steve Jobs to build Apple into an amazing “team”. This book summarizes some historic moments (and relationships) in the Valley, but by no means defines what is to come next, or what kind of new extraordinary relationships will make the next trillion-dollar company. You can use this book as a tool, not a rulebook, as Bill would suggest if he were alive.
Some memorable quotes from Bill:
- “Your title makes you a manager, your people make you a leader.” This highlights his conviction that true leadership is earned through respect and trust, rather than merely holding authority.
- “To care about people you have to care about people.” Campbell emphasized the importance of genuine care and compassion for team members as individuals, which drives better performance and builds strong relationships.
- “Work the team, then the problem.” His approach prioritized building strong, cohesive teams before tackling challenges, believing the right team could solve any problem.
- “Winning depends on having the best team, and the best teams have more women.” Campbell was a strong advocate for diversity and inclusion, recognizing its role in creating higher-performing teams. While ahead of his time, I wish we could have a female version of Bill in our near future so that female founders (esp. those who don’t play football) can relate.
- “A coach is someone who tells you what you don’t want to hear, who has you see what you don’t want to see, so you can be who you have always known you could be.” This quote encapsulates his direct yet supportive coaching style, focused on challenging individuals to reach their full potential. And yes, he also swore a lot. =D
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