In 2025, one of the biggest impressions regarding 3D printing technology is that the Chinese 3D printing industry is experiencing comprehensive and accelerated development, truly entering an era of explosive growth. In this article, I will review some details from the past decade and provide multiple examples to support this conclusion.
I started engaging with 3D printing technology in 2012, working in laser processing technology (including 3D printing). At that time, laser engraving machines, marking machines, and cutting machines that only existed in laboratories or processing workshops have now been integrated into desktop machines that can easily enter ordinary households by companies like Tuchu, Chuangxiang Sanwei, and xTool. This is one of the best examples of industrial technology transitioning to ordinary consumers.
The changes that have occurred over the past decade have not been easy.
If we were to pinpoint the year when the Chinese 3D printing industry was born, it would undoubtedly be around the 1990s when experts like Academician Lu Bingheng and Professor Yan Yongnian first paved the way. If we discuss when 3D printing became known from a broader social perspective, we must trace back to 2012 when then-President Obama identified 3D printing as one of the key national directions in his State of the Union address. From that year onward, the 3D printing technology craze swept the globe.
However, how to develop it was unknown. At that time, Europe and America were only technically advanced but lacked experience in how to use it and where to apply it; everyone was feeling their way across the river. I remember that during the years 2015-2018, many industry insiders were most excited about grabbing red envelopes in 3D printing WeChat groups while watching the Spring Festival Gala, perhaps more lively than family groups, as everyone speculated when this industry would explode. During this period, many people entered and many left. I was particularly impressed by individuals who stirred up the industry but quickly withdrew. Observing for ten years, I found that they kept chasing trends, from 3D printing to low-altitude economy to robotics, forming alliances one after another. I believe my peers have similar impressions.
Many discussions during those years revolved around talent issues, with companies unable to find suitable individuals who understood technology and operations. The overall scale of the industry was quite small, and industry exhibitions were almost gatherings among peers, with greetings like “Nice to see you again” and “Wow, it’s great to meet online friends” constantly heard.
Then there was the question of where 3D printing could be applied. Aerospace and medical fields were the first to show application scenarios, but the vast majority could only engage in the civilian market, such as molds and the automotive industry. Traditional industries felt that our technology was too slow and too expensive. Even for ordinary consumer-grade 3D printers, finding a model back then required considerable effort, and the equipment was unstable.
At that time, many were wondering when this industry would truly explode. Looking back at the technology of that time compared to today, it is completely incomparable.
Quantitative changes lead to qualitative changes.
The domestic 3D printing industry has indeed experienced several years of overall confusion, but the technological development and application exploration over the past decade have never ceased. It is the development of technology that ultimately drives change.
From the depth of industry application, using 3D printing in the aerospace field was once a remarkable achievement, and the national team would always highlight it in special reports; now, it is hardly mentioned. This indicates that in the eyes of the national team, this technology has become a conventional manufacturing method. Using 3D printing is no longer considered innovative; it would be strange not to use it. In the private aerospace sector, almost every private aerospace company claims to be using 3D printing.
In terms of application breadth, a large number of traditional manufacturing enterprises have begun to use 3D printing technology. I update weekly on cases of traditional industry enterprises using 3D printing technology, which illustrates this situation. Additionally, more industries have started to use this technology on a large scale, such as the electronics and 3C industries, which have gradually figured out how to use metal 3D printing in the past two years.
This is partly due to the significant reduction in equipment and material costs. The market was once limited, with opportunities mostly for a few large manufacturers; now, whether metal or non-metal, many manufacturers pursuing extreme cost-performance ratios have developed to a certain scale. Equipment that once cost millions is now surprisingly affordable. Moreover, the usability and stability of the equipment have improved, and companies have accumulated experience to a certain stage, allowing users to transition from having no idea how to use it to gradually knowing how to creatively apply it to their actual situations.
In terms of talent, multiple universities have established 3D printing majors, supplying a large number of talents to society. Now, the competition among enterprises has shifted from ordinary operators to the top tier of talent.
The industry has entered an era of explosive growth.
Whether the domestic 3D printing industry has truly entered an era of explosive growth still requires several examples, namely the explosive growth of construction projects, the entry of giants, and changes in ordinary consumer demand.
1. The explosive growth of 3D printing construction projects in 2025.
In 2025, from the beginning of the year to now, numerous 3D printing construction projects worth hundreds of millions have emerged. If there are not several news items in a month, I even feel a bit bland. According to inquiries, there were six construction projects in November; eight in October; three in September; three in July; one in June; and one each month from January to April.
As of the end of November, there have been at least 24 investment construction projects initiated in 2025, with projects that have specified investment amounts totaling up to 14.2 billion, and several projects exceeding 100 million have not disclosed their amounts, so the actual figure may reach 15 billion. These refer to construction projects such as the “Infrastructure Construction Project for Key Components of Additive Manufacturing” in Luzhou, the “Ultra-High-Speed 3D Printing Smart Cloud Factory Project,” and the “3D Printing Ink + Artificial Skin Production Project,” among others.
Such a “massive” investment in 3D printing projects being announced to start construction within a year is precisely what industry insiders have long anticipated as an explosion.
2. The entry of giants like DJI, Meituan, and Tencent.
Another significant change in 2025 is the surge in investment and financing cases. According to statistics from 3D Printing Technology Reference, as of now, the number of industry-related investment and financing cases this year has reached at least 63. Some peers estimate that the specific amount may exceed 5 billion.
Among a series of financing cases, the entry of giants like DJI, Meituan, and Tencent has undoubtedly attracted widespread attention. It should be noted that giants typically do not personally lay out in the early stages of an industry’s development; instead, they seize the high ground when the trend is very clear and the risks are controllable. They will use massive capital to bet on “certainty.”
In the 3D printing industry, the years 2024-2025, or 2025-2026, represent a critical point where all signals shift from yellow to green. Technical pain points are being resolved, market data is starting to soar, and the commercial ecosystem is taking shape. Now is the “eve of the explosion” for the 3D printing industry. No, for the 3D printing industry, it has already exploded.
3. Changes in consumer patterns.
If the past five years were characterized by “flowers blooming inside the wall while red outside” (with the supply chain and technology rooted domestically, but the consumer market mainly driven by overseas), then the next 5-10 years will undoubtedly be a new pattern of “both sides of the wall blooming.”
This significant shift is still attributed to the resolution of the series of issues mentioned above, as almost all factors that limited ordinary users from using 3D printing have been overcome. The domestic ordinary consumer market has quietly opened up, and the growth rate of this market will be astonishing.
First, regarding equipment prices, one can obtain a very stable device for around 1,000 yuan, with national subsidies available; secondly, the user experience has rapidly improved, allowing for printing right out of the box, easy access to models, and the ability to generate unique models with the help of AI; thirdly, rapid technological iterations have led to the emergence of multi-color printing devices that are faster and more material-efficient, truly on the eve of explosion. With the same budget, one can choose a Huawei Mate 80 or a Snapmaker U1.
The government is also promoting this from a policy perspective. On November 25, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and five other departments issued a notice on the “Implementation Plan for Enhancing the Adaptability of Supply and Demand for Consumer Goods,” deploying measures to enhance the adaptability of supply and demand for consumer goods and promote the introduction of 3D printing equipment into classrooms to cultivate new consumption scenarios and new business formats.
Driven by these factors, the demand for ordinary 3D printers in China is rapidly increasing. JD.com’s Double Eleven report shows that in 2024, the transaction volume of 3D printing increased by 130% year-on-year; in 2025, the transaction volume increased by 110%, with some devices selling 10,000 units within four hours of going online. These data prove the robust domestic consumer market, but in the community where I live, there are only a handful of families with 3D printers, yet almost every family has children! The potential market is enormous.
END
Over the past decade, the application and development of 3D printing technology in China can be said to be the best in the world. Those who have persisted until now have truly witnessed the darkest moments, experienced the dawn, and finally welcomed the midday sun.
Therefore, I firmly believe that the domestic 3D printing industry has truly ushered in an explosive moment. It is the result of mature technology, awakened capital, and market forces. 3D printing has completely shed its positioning as a “supplementary process” and has grown into a fundamental force driving profound changes in the manufacturing industry.#AdditiveManufacturing #3DPrinting
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Further reading:
1. What is the current state of the 3D printing industry? This additive manufacturing industry annual meeting is about to be held, with academicians attending.
2. Artificial intelligence and 3D printing are deeply bound, and their importance will only increase!
3. Apple announces: This year, all Apple Watch Ultra 3 and titanium Series 11 cases will be made using 3D printing technology!
4. In November, Beijing will host a heavyweight 3D printing exhibition.