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If I were an AI doomer, I would say something like: 'Just need one of these connected to a "data center of geniuses" to bootstrap the robocalypse.'

A vibrator, not a rotating motor.

Interesting idea, but not all that useful. I was expecting a pancake motor, since those are mostly flat plates. Printed circuit pancake motors, where the windings are printed circuit traces, do exist. The 3D printer setup they have ought to be able to make most of the parts for such a motor.

Good bearings will be tough. Their structural material is PLA, which is not a good bearing material. Nylon might work, but at some point you need to smooth out the bearing surfaces. That may be why they chose to make a vibrator, with flexures rather than bearings.

Metal capable CNCs are getting as cheap as 3D printers. It look forward to designing my own lamination stacks.

ScholarlyArticle: "Fully 3D-Printed electric motor manufactured via multi-modal, multi-material extrusion" (2026) https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/17452759.2026.2...

NewsArticle: "3D-printing platform rapidly produces complex electric machines" https://news.mit.edu/2026/3d-printing-platform-rapidly-produ...

No pictures

The paper has plenty of pictures. You do have to click through to the PDF.

One of the applications I was really hoping for was for 3d printers to be able to, by themselves, do things you could ask a human to do. Insert components (like screws, nuts, nylon wire, ...) maybe even bend copper wires into place while printing a 3d model and, you know, just make that work.

Printing silver conductive ink, I mean nice and useful, I'm sure. But not quite what I need.

> One of the applications I was really hoping for was for 3d printers to be able to, by themselves, do things you could ask a human to do. Insert components (like screws, nuts, nylon wire, ...) [...] while printing a 3d model and, you know, just make that work.

Prusa is working on a Pick & Place Toolhead for the Prusa XL that is a step in this direction:

> https://blog.prusa3d.com/xl-in-2026-new-toolheads-lower-pric...

"One Print, Multiple Components: Pick & Place Tool

Some technical prints require additional components, such as magnets, threaded inserts, or bearings, to be placed during the build. Without automation, this typically means you have to pause the print and insert the part(s) by hand. Although PrusaSlicer made this process easier a while ago, The Pick & Place toolhead can do it for you, completely autonomously. This reduces manual intervention and improves placement accuracy.

We’ve co-developed the toolhead with the Zurich University of Applied Sciences (ZHAW) and it’s designed for models that combine 3D-printed models with off-the-shelf components. We’re currently targeting late 2026 with its implementation."