US-based metal 3D printer producer Desktop Metal completed a $65m financing round led by automotive manufacturer Ford Motor Company yesterday that included the Australian state-owned Future Fund.

Founded in 2015, Desktop Metal develops and sells systems capable of printing 3D metal parts for prototyping, and is working on a generative design tool called Live Parts.

The company claims its office-accessible Studio System is 10 times cheaper than rival products, and that its Production System can mass produce parts 100 times…