Haiden Brown

Haiden Tate Brown first saw a 3D printer when she was 9 years old. In the autumn of 2014, her school had just bought one of the machines and she saw it printing a head of Elsa from Frozen. Haiden had grown up in a lower middle class family. The Brown family were well off enough to have an average but old house, three cars, and a Mac, but were still frugal and knew basic survival skills. Haiden had type 2 narcolepsy, which took a toll on her grades despite being intelligent. Haiden wanted a 3D printer but soon learned they can cost thousands of dollars. She was discouraged by this and forgot about 3D printing for a few years.

But in 2018, Haiden was aimlessly, endlessly scrolling through social media on the verge of falling asleep, when she found an ad for 3D printers for less than the cost of a laptop. And so for her 15th birthday, she got her dad and her older brother Cody to buy her a 3D printer. For some months, she just printed random things for herself. But then Haiden saw a business opportunity.

Haiden began selling 3D prints by the gram. But she had a massive obstacle to overcome. Making the 3D models was a nearly insurmountable task for her. For the first few months, she simply printed whatever models were on the Internet. But she eventually made friends with some 3D modelers. She now gives them a gig when someone asks for something she can’t find on the Internet. By mid-2023, Haiden’s business was raking in $95,000 a year.

While Haiden quickly learned how hard 3D modeling is and how limited her options for something to 3D print were, she is sticking around as a 3D printer tech to see what comes next. She is interested in the journey rather than the destination. Haiden owns four 3D printers. She has a Raise3D, a large printer that she is still paying off. Her favorite among her 3D printers is the Portavoz, a small portable battery-operated 3D printer.

She runs her army of 3D printers from her Mac Studio. Haiden trusts her lifelong friend Coral with anything Mac-related, because she has a long-running interest in Macs and is now a certified Mac repairer. Haiden and Coral have known each other since Haiden was in kindergarten and Coral was in 1st grade. 

Haiden has straight caramel or honey hair and dark green eyes, almost like a chalkboard. She has an incredible amount of patience, necessary for her job as a 3D printer operator. Outside of 3D printing, Haiden has also tried surfing. She is a coffee lover.

Fullz is her orange cat. Haiden trusts and babies him more than any human. Fullz is a slang term used by hackers for someone’s entire identifying information. When Haiden got her cat as a kitten, she thought the word was cute enough as a cat name. Fullz’s job is to keep mice away from Haiden’s machines.

Haiden’s great great grandfather, Fletcher Brown, fought in World War I as a rifleman and later a grenadier.