Dr. James Hedrick is currently the CEO and co-founder of Azul 3D which is commercializing the first 3D printing technology capable of competing with the speed, strength, and economy of scale of injection molding. Dr. Hedrick started his first company at the age of 16. The profits paid for his college tuition at MIT, where he was also a NCAA student athlete. He went on to receive his PhD at Northwestern University with Professor Mirkin, during which he developed seminal technology at the core of Azul 3D. He was both a National Defense Science and Engineering Graduate and Ryan Fellow. Dr. Hedrick has authored 16 manuscripts and has 4 patents, two of which are granted. Most recently, he was named to Forbes 30 Under 30 Class of 2020.