Printing the IoT (keynote)

Electronics is entering a new era in which we need to go beyond mass production and begin to address unique, customized devices that are made on-demand.  Wearables, automotive and a vast range of IoT applications cannot be served by traditional “electronics in a box” solutions.  A key enabler for this transition is flexible and conformal electronics.  For the last couple of decades, printed and flexible electronics was viewed as a low-cost manufacturing option for mass products such as displays and RFID.  The challenge of delivering cost and performance in competition with well-established products has been significant. More recently, we see new opportunities for flexible, printed and hybrid electronics to deliver unique, often niche products. Unique form factors and tight integration of electronics will benefit from a digital, additive manufacturing infrastructure. Printing is an enabler for mass customization of electronics, for an IoT with smart things that fuse form and function in new ways.