A rapid material development process for a powder bed fusion additive manufacturing (PBF AM) process generally utilizes a computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation to facilitate selection of a simulated parameter set, which can then be used in a design of experiments (DOE) to generate an orthogonal parameter space to predict an ideal parameter set. The orthogonal parameter space defined by the DOE can then be used to generate a multitude of reduced volume build samples using PBF AM with varying laser or electron beam parameters and/or feedstock chemistries. The reduced volume build samples are mechanically characterized using high throughput techniques and analyzed to provide an optimal parameter set for a 3D article or a validation sample, which provides an increased understanding of the parameters and their independent and confounding effects on defects and microstructure. Additionally, machine learning techniques can be used to optimize for future parameter selection by modeling the relationship between input processing parameters and outputs of material characterization.