Opportunities for creatives can be hard to come by, but if you’re a 3D designer/modeler, Elegoo’s offering a unique opportunity to be a part of something great… and make money while doing it. The manufacturing giant behind popular resin printers like the Saturn and Mars series has launched a creator fund for their new Nexprint platform that flips the traditional 3D model marketplace on its head. Instead of waiting for sales commissions, creators get paid $5 upfront for every approved original design they upload, with exceptional work earning another $5 plus featured placement.
The beauty lies in the simplicity and creator-friendly terms. There’s no exclusivity clause, meaning designers can post their work on Nexprint while still selling on platforms like CGTrader or TurboSquid. There’s no monthly submission limit either, allowing prolific creators to earn substantial rewards through volume. The first phase kicks off August 9th through August 31st, with the reward pool refreshing monthly thereafter and distributing funds on a first-come-first-served basis.
What’s particularly clever is the referral system that pays creators for growing the community. Designers can earn up to $100 monthly through tiered invitation bonuses by bringing other creators to the platform. This creates a network effect where established designers have financial incentive to mentor and recruit new talent, potentially accelerating both platform growth and content diversity.
“This fund shows our commitment to delivering the best user experience to Nexprint community by hosting a tremendous amount of 3D models accessible to everyone,” said Chris Hong, CEO at Elegoo. “We greatly value originality in this industry. Nexprint will be a perfect platform to showcase creators’ original ideas. We believe in here every design will pay off.”
Elegoo has the resources to back up these ambitious plans. Founded in 2015, the Shenzhen-based company has grown to over 1,000 employees with nearly 30,000 square meters of manufacturing facilities. Their 2024 revenue exceeded $220 million, with millions of devices shipped across more than 100 countries. This isn’t a speculative startup making promises; it’s an established hardware manufacturer creating an ecosystem around their existing product line.
The strategic implications are fascinating. By removing exclusivity requirements and paying upfront, Nexprint positions itself as a complementary income stream rather than a replacement for existing marketplaces. This approach could rapidly build a massive catalog since creators face minimal opportunity cost for participating. For emerging designers especially, guaranteed payments provide financial stability that commission-only platforms simply can’t match.
Nexprint’s open-source philosophy and focus on print-ready files further differentiates it from competitors. The platform emphasizes accessibility and workflow integration, with one-click printing capabilities designed to eliminate friction between finding a model and actually printing it. This user-centric approach aligns perfectly with Elegoo’s hardware business, creating a virtuous cycle where printer sales drive model demand, which drives creator rewards, which drives model supply.
The million-dollar fund represents roughly 200,000 individual submissions over the year, based on the base rate of $5 per model, excluding the additional $5 bonus awarded to outstanding designs. That’s an enormous content injection that could quickly establish Nexprint as a major player in the 3D model space. For creators, the calculation is straightforward: there’s virtually no downside to participating, and significant potential upside in both immediate payments and long-term platform visibility.
Elegoo’s bet is that paying creators upfront will ultimately cost less than competing on commission rates while building a more loyal community. For the 3D printing ecosystem as a whole, this initiative could democratize design by making it financially viable for more creators to contribute, potentially leading to more diverse and innovative content for everyone’s print beds. The printing community has needed this kind of direct investment in creators for years, and Elegoo might have just cracked the code.
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