An updated edition of the March 12, 2026 article.

3D Printing, or additive manufacturing, has transformed product design and fabrication. Since emerging in the 1980s, the technology has evolved from a niche prototyping tool into an advanced manufacturing solution that converts digital designs into physical objects layer by layer, enabling high precision, customization and faster production cycles.

Once confined mainly to prototype development, 3D printing is now widely used to manufacture medical prosthetics, aerospace components, architectural models and consumer products. Unlike traditional subtractive manufacturing methods, additive manufacturing minimizes material waste and enables the creation of highly complex structures that were previously difficult or impossible to produce.

Companies are increasingly adopting 3D printing for rapid prototyping and on-demand manufacturing because of its cost advantages and sustainability benefits. Localized production helps shorten supply chains and lower transportation costs, while on-demand manufacturing reduces the need for large inventories, making it especially useful for industries with seasonal demand or urgent replacement-part needs. Industry leaders like e Xometry (XMTR Quick QuoteXMTR - Free Report) , Proto Labs (PRLB Quick QuotePRLB - Free Report) and Stratasys (SSYS Quick QuoteSSYS - Free Report) continue to spearhead technological breakthroughs in this space.

Adoption is accelerating across healthcare, aerospace, automotive and consumer goods. In aerospace, the technology is used to produce lightweight yet durable aircraft and spacecraft components. The automotive industry relies on 3D printing for prototyping, tooling and customized parts. In healthcare, it enables the production of patient-specific medical devices and prosthetics, with ongoing advances in tissue and organ printing holding the potential to reshape modern medicine.

Geographically, North America remains the leading market, accounting for more than 35% of global share due to strong research investments, supportive government policies and advanced manufacturing capabilities. Meanwhile, Asia-Pacific countries, particularly China and India, are rapidly expanding adoption to strengthen their industrial competitiveness.

We believe that 3D Printing offers compelling growth opportunities for investors, supported by its expanding addressable market and strong innovation pipeline.

Our 3D Printing Screen makes it easy to identify high-potential stocks. Currently, stocks like NVIDIA (NVDA Quick QuoteNVDA - Free Report) , AMETEK (AME Quick QuoteAME - Free Report) , Carpenter Technology (CRS Quick QuoteCRS - Free Report) and ATI Inc. (ATI Quick QuoteATI - Free Report) look lucrative. 

Ready to uncover more transformative thematic investment ideas? Explore 37 cutting-edge investment themes with Zacks Thematic Investing Screens and discover your next big opportunity.

4 Must-Have 3D Printing Stocks for Your Portfolio

NVIDIA has played a major role in advancing the 3D printing industry by integrating its AI and GPU technologies into additive manufacturing workflows. One of the most notable examples is its collaboration with HP’s 3D Printing division, where HP uses NVIDIA’s AI tool, Modulus, to improve manufacturing efficiency and precision. HP developed Virtual Foundry Graphnet to predict the behavior of metal powders during the printing process, helping manufacturers optimize production, reduce defects and improve overall part quality

Through its venture arm, NVentures, NVIDIA has backed startups that are pushing boundaries in 3D Printing. This includes Freeform, a company founded by former SpaceX engineers. Freeform designed, built and deployed the world’s highest-throughput laser metal 3D printing system and put it into full-scale production. Freeform recently secured another funding from NVentures and other investors to accelerate Skyfall, its next-generation factory platform scheduled to go live in the first half of 2026, which is capable of scaling throughput by another 25x.  

NVIDIA’s Omniverse platform and PhysX engine enable real-time simulation of materials and structures, which are useful for testing a 3D print before actually printing it. NVIDIA's generative AI tool Magic3D can create high-quality 3D textured mesh models from text prompts, while LATTE3D (Large-scale Amortized Text-To-Enhanced3D Synthesis), is a text-to-3D generator that creates 3D models in less than a second, leveraging the power of NVIDIA’s RTX A6000 GPU. With this groundbreaking advancement, NVIDIA propelled 3D design into an era of unprecedented efficiency and creativity. NVDA’s NeRFs (Neural Radiance Fields) is an AI model that reconstructs 3D models from 2D photos. This is useful for reverse engineering objects for 3D printing, turning real-world items into printable models, and converting video or image data into detailed 3D meshes.

NVDA currently carries a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).  You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

AMETEK, through its Specialty Metal Products (SMP) unit, is a leading producer of high-performance metal powders designed for additive manufacturing. It offers a range of alloys and size distributions specific to different additive manufacturing processes, including Laser Powder Bed, Binder Jet and Cold Spray and machines. AME’s most common additive manufacturing powder materials include stainless steel 316L (including A240 grade), Stainless steel 304L and Stainless steel 17-4PH. It also offers specialty austenitic and ferritic stainless steels, as well as a selection of high-quality nickel and cobalt alloy powders that are designed specifically for 3D printing applications.

Backed by more than five decades of expertise, the combination of scale, precision and material science enables the company to deliver reliable, high-quality powders that support consistent performance and cost efficiency in additive manufacturing.

In July 2025, AME acquired Faro Technologies, a leading provider of 3D measurement and imaging solutions. Faro’s offerings include portable measurement arms, laser scanners and trackers, software solutions and comprehensive service offerings serving a diverse range of end markets. This was AMETEK’s largest addition in precision scanning since the acquisition of Creaform in 2013.  Creaform is a well-known developer and manufacturer of innovative portable 3D measurement technologies and a provider of 3D engineering services. In October 2024, the company complemented Creaform’s business capabilities with the acquisition of Virtek Vision International, a leading provider of advanced laser-based projection and inspection systems. AME currently carries a Zacks Rank of 2.

Carpenter Technology formed the Carpenter Additive business unit in May 2019. The company has been building its additive capabilities through the acquisitions of LPW Technology Ltd., Puris and CalRAM over the past few years. In late 2019, CRS opened its Emerging Technology Center in Athens, AL, capable of atomizing a range of specialty alloys into metal powder and manufacturing the powder into finished parts using AM technology (3D Metal Printing). The downstream equipment for transforming the initially produced part into a final finished product included the state-of-the-art quick-cooling Hot Isostatic Press system, as well as vacuum heat treating to optimize the material properties of high-value specialty alloy components.

The Carpenter Additive business is one of the world's most versatile producers of spherical, gas-atomized, pre-alloyed metal powders and consolidated powder metallurgy products. The powders meet the unique demands of additive manufacturing, metal injection molding, hot isostatic pressing, near-net shapes, surface enhancement processes and tool steels.

Starting from powder production to manufacturing and finishing parts, the end-to-end capabilities differentiate Carpenter Additive from the rest of the industry. CRS currently carries a Zacks Rank of 2. 

ATI offers a full range of capabilities throughout the additive supply chain, from metal powder and material science to the finished part. ATI Additive Manufacturing is one of the few providers to deliver expertise in both Electron Beam Melting and Powder Bed Fusion, geared toward exacting and demanding performance environments. As a fully integrated supplier, ATI Additive delivers customer solutions throughout the supply chain, from metal powder and materials science to the finished part. 

Given its extensive powder metals offering, ATI Additive can quickly respond to customers' needs for their additive part demands. Leveraging ATI’s metallurgical leadership, it can also develop new alloys for additive manufacturing on request or address industry challenges. The company continues to increase its production capacity for advanced metallic powders for use in next-generation aerospace products, including additive manufacturing applications.

ATI has commissioned a state-of-the-art facility for additive manufacturing products, bringing online the most advanced large-format, metal additive manufacturing capabilities in the industry. The facility combines design, printing, heat treating, machining and inspection capabilities under one roof. From design to finished product, the company has created a one-stop solution center to address challenges in high-performance markets like aerospace, defense and space. ATI currently carries a Zacks Rank of 2.