CEO Whitman certainly thinks soHP to make big revelation about 3D printing technology in June, hinting it has solved its two main bug bears – slowness and quality.
That’s according to CEO Meg Whitman, who told shareholders at last week’s company AGM to expect a “big technology” announcement midyear, declaring it’s “hot on the case of 3D printing.”
“It’s like watching ice melt,” Whitman declared, referring to the slowness of current 3D printers.
“We believe we have solved both these problems and we’ll be making a big technology announcement in June around how we are going to approach this.”
The IT giant will focus its 3D efforts on the enterprise demand first, which will be a bigger market.
“We have a host of new and very innovative products and services that are changing the IT landscape and helping our customers drive business outcomes. Innovation is alive and well at Hewlett-Packard,” she said.
This week, HP announced a slew of LaserJet devices with NFC touch-to-print and wireless direct mobile printing options, also targeted at enterprise.
Comments made at the AGM also show Whitman is going softly, softly on developing a sustainable mobility strategy, following the flop of 2011 that was HP’s ThinkPad tablet.
It just launched a phablet device in India but there has also been persistent rumors about HP launching a smartphone.
“What we do not want to do is launch a smartphone initiative where we go lose a billion dollars. That is not what we’re about at this moment.”
“We have accomplished a lot,” she said, at the AGM Santa Clara, California. “We’ve made so much progress in our financials that we have to find a way to capture mobility in a way that is right for HP.”
She also spoke of “clear and compelling corporate strategy” developed over the past year and “reconnecting” with partners and customers.
Getting its head around 3D printing could be a godsend for HP, where Q1 FY14 printing division fell 2%, a unit that has struggled in recent years.
