How does IBM make a profit on a $20 device?

Well, apart from the design costs, the value chain is now virtually 'free' - zero manufacturing cost (the user manufactures the Eye-Eye Pad themselves), virtually zero logistic costs (just moving bits, not atoms). The one-year IBM guarantee covers total replacement in case of any failure - that would just mean a new download of the blueprint with the user responsible for re-printing the device.

It looks like on sales of (say) 100 million devices at $20 the profit could be as high as $1.5 billion. Nice new business model!

From designer straight to desk-top manufacturing at the point of usage

Dateline: 17 June 2020

Over the past two decades we have become used to our consumer electronics being made in Asia. Even though there are ever-more disturbing reports of inhuman conditions in Asian factories, including the latest suicides and murders to cover up corrupt practices, companies such as Apple have had no alternative to producing in these low-wage economies. Yesterday, IBM announced its first venture ...