At first glance, the clear plastic cup looks empty—with just some bright pink, hexagonal embellishments on the bottom. But there’s more to this container than meets the eye.
In fact, it’s not any cup—it’s a Smart Cup.
Founded by Chris Kanik ’05, Arts & Sciences econ major, Smart Cups has developed proprietary technology for 3D-printing ingredients onto surfaces; to access the final product, the consumer just adds water.
In this case, the colorful hexagons dissolve into a berry-flavored energy drink, one of several kinds the California-based company sells online.
But as Kanik—whose product was named one of the best inventions of 2021 by Time magazine—stresses, the beverages are just the beginning. They’re proof of concept for the technology, whose positive impacts he says could be profound.
“We can print food, medications, supplements, micronutrients, and more,” says Kanik, whose firm has grown to 30 staffers.
