Has anyone tried this process?
I believe it's Danish in origin, but there's a (local to me) dealer in Northern Ireland. Hardwoods (beech and ash are favoured) are steamed then compressed _lengthways_ in large hydraulic presses. The compressed timber now takes a permanent shortening of maybe 5% and is stored (wrapped) to maintain its high humidity until ready for use. Timberyards sell it in this condition.
When you want to bend it, you bend it with little more than hand pressure to shape, then hold it in place and air dry it until humidity drops. The initial pre-compression makes it easy to bend and avoids cracking. Once dried, the wood is stable.
They're offering it as a solution for one-off architectural shapes, such as curved window frames. You only need lightweight jigs to form it and the simpler process for the end-user avoids the need to steam it yourself.