About the Polar Cloud (includes CEO message and platform history)

A Message from the CEO + A Brief History

I've been in the 3D printing world since 2016—starting, like many others, as a hobbyist. My first printer was a Prusa i3 clone, built from a cheap Amazon kit with a clear acrylic frame. That hands-on experience led me down a path of building custom machines, helping market some of the most popular 3D printer brands, and attending dozens of industry events.

In 2017, I joined Polar3D to support our own hardware—the Polar Printer. This unique machine used polar coordinates (instead of the traditional X/Y Cartesian system), featuring a circular mirror-glass build plate and a built-in Raspberry Pi that connected directly to our online platform: the Polar Cloud.

The Polar Printer offered a large build volume in a compact footprint, but like many early designs, it had its limitations. In 2018, we made the tough decision to sunset the hardware. Rather than trying to keep up in an increasingly crowded printer market, we turned our full attention to what we believed had the most long-term potential: the software.

We doubled down on the Polar Cloud with a clear mission:
To make 3D printing easier to manage, access, and scale—especially in K–12 schools, higher ed, libraries, and team environments.

Back then, there was no real way to remotely control your printer from a browser, slice a file online, or share print access with students or colleagues without lots of workarounds. The Polar Cloud changed that.

Since then, the platform has grown steadily:

• Trusted by over 7,000 schools in 170+ countries

• Integrated with leading 3D printer brands, slicers, and classroom tools

• Used by educators, makerspaces, enterprises, and individual hobbyists

• Backed by an active development team focused on practical, user-driven tools

We've expanded far beyond the original vision. What started as a tool to support one printer is now a full-fledged cloud-based ecosystem for 3D printing. And our latest collaboration with Bambu Lab is one of the most exciting milestones yet.

I believe the Polar Cloud will continue to be a meaningful part of how people print, share, and learn for years to come—and I invite you to explore it for yourself.

If you have questions or feedback, I’d love to hear from you. Just email info@polar3d.com and your message will be passed along to me directly.

See you in the Cloud,
Van Morris
CEO, Polar3D