Al Whatmough - A new journey begins

Well, I have officially started my new role as CEO of Toolpath (toolpath.com). I will always look back at my time at Autodesk with gratitude and a strong sense of accomplishment. For those who know me, being part of the team that integrated CAM inside Autodesk Fusion has been, until now, the highlight of my career. Whether it was working with the original HSM team and collaborating with the teams who joined Autodesk from Delcam, or working with our strategic partners from across the industry, the journey has been thoroughly rewarding. Most importantly, it’s the friendships in the industry that I gained that brought joy and purpose to the role while being critical to making Fusion the  fastest growing and, arguably, most popular CAM product over the past decade.

So, what did I see in Toolpath that inspired me to take the leap from such a secure career.  Well,  I love to build things. I love to build things physically, on machines, and with tools. I love to build products and create tools that help others build things, too. I also love building teams and making connections with partners, customers, and colleagues. This is my passion. I have been fortunate to do all that at Autodesk. But, I was starting to lose the fire that drove me for so many years. That's when I read the book The Six Types of Working Genius by Patrick Lencioni. The book helped me evaluate what drives and inspires me.

The book outlines the different phases of work, from wonder and invention to discernment and galvanization to enablement and tenacity. Looking back at my time at Autodesk, I mapped each phase to my journey with Fusion Manufacturing. In the early days, we were exploring how Autodesk could enter the crowded CAM market and scale into a real business. The HSM team was small and agile. As we built momentum with Fusion, the Delcam acquisition was completed, and we entered the galvanize phase. The challenge was to integrate the various development and product teams into One Team and adopt a cohesive product strategy that allowed Autodesk to benefit from the best each product and team had to offer. I was proud to have had a front-row seat during that exciting time. I am especially proud that we proved the naysayers wrong by successfully combining multiple solutions into a single platform. Now is the time for the organization to enter the tenacity stage, where the goal is to deliver the next level of detail. That phase requires a hyper-focus on organization and an extreme focus on process. Despite the utmost confidence extended to me and strong support from Autodesk leadership, it is not my strength or passion. Therefore, I have decided to set out on this new adventure with Toolpath, where I can best utilize my skills and challenge myself with an opportunity that will bring me the most professional satisfaction and personal joy. So why Toolpath, why now?

Opportunities for disruption are often driven by advancements in technology. Many of the new AI-driven tools you are beginning to see today were thought up a decade or more ago, but the compute power wasn’t available or the cost was prohibitive. As industry leaders like NVIDIA, Intel, and AMD race to develop the chips to power the AI revolution, companies like Microsoft are betting their future on developing the software platforms to enable the development of AI-powered or AI-enabled software that will transform every information-based industry. In manufacturing, we are at a crossroads. Attrition has impacted every aspect of manufacturing from the front office to the shop floor. Thankfully, the younger generation is filling up the machining programs in trades schools and the field of engineering has never been a more popular subject in college. But, no matter how great these schools are, they can’t inject the decades of machining or CNC programming experience that is leaving the industry. Therefore, the people who remain, those who are about to enter our industry and existing manufacturing professionals, need intelligent tools that make them more effective, regardless of their skillset. Young programmers will produce CNC programs that look like they were programmed by a veteran. Veterans will accomplish two to three times the amount of work in the same amount of time. That is, if the tools to enable this are created. Tools that were focused on increasing the productivity of the toolpath programming community, not replacing it. As I talked with the team at Toolpath, it was clear that our beliefs were aligned. It was also clear from looking at what they had already built that this was the case.

Toolpath is developing an AI-Powered Machining Platform based on a unique Part Comprehension Engine. Without divulging too much, the technology takes a holistic view of a part and develops a machining strategy based on best-practices and user preferences, thus eliminating the menial tasks, such as geometry selection, associated with every CNC programming job. The DFM, quoting, and CAM capabilities are designed to work together to provide end-users with the professional output they need with the quality and efficiency they expect. This is why, when given the option, I eagerly accepted the opportunity to lead the team at Toolpath.

People know I value collaboration and believe the key to success is leveraging the knowledge and experience of our community.  Our goal at Toolpath is to solve real problems, not replicate what others are doing. I am excited for all those who will take this journey with us. A journey I am confident that will result in changing the future of machining, together.