Bechthold received a "Diplom-Ingenieur" degree in architecture from the Rheinisch-Westfalische Technische Hochschule in Aachen, Germany, and a Doctor of Design Degree from the Harvard Graduate School of Design. He is a registered architect in Germany and has practiced in London, Paris and Hamburg. During this period he was associated with firms such as Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, Santiago Calatrava, and von Gerkan, Marg & Partner. More recently he co-founded MM-design, a firm engaged in product design, architecture and structural consulting. Bechthold's research primarily deals with computer-aided design and manufacturing applications in architecture, with a current focus on structural systems, construction automation, and robotics. His work on the design and fabrication of surface structures has won several awards. Bechthold has published on a broad range of topics in technology, has lectured widely, and participated in symposia in North-America, Asia,and in Europe. He is one of the co-authors of the recently published Digital Design and Manufacturing: CAD/CAM Applications in Architecture, Structures, as well as the author of Innovative Surface Structures. Bechthold was awarded the Harvard Provost Grant for "Innovation in Instructional Computing" for the development of interactive online teaching modules for teaching structures, as well as multiple other grants to support his research.

His current research projects include the design and fabrication of an interactive, mobile information kiosk for the Harvard University Art Museum (collaboration with Allan Sayegh), and the use of robotic fabrication in architecture.