Bambu Lab Wants Makers to 3D Print Everyday Aids in New Competition

Bambu Lab is asking the maker community to solve real everyday problems with 3D printing. The company launched Make for Good, a global design competition running from September 16 through December 2026 on MakerWorld.

The contest is built around 24 design briefs from seven assistive technology organizations. Each brief describes a single, specific challenge faced by a person with a disability. One comes from Jessica Cox, founder of the Rightfooted Foundation International. Cox was born without arms and uses her feet for daily tasks. She puts on the first sock with her bare foot. With the second, she lacks the friction to pull the fabric over her heel. Closing a bicycle helmet is also difficult. She sits on the floor and feels her way to connect the buckle.

Other briefs cover kitchen tools for one-handed use, a toothbrush that does not have to be held between fingers, knitting needle supports after a stroke, pen caps that open without a strong grip, and tabletop games for children with cerebral palsy that look like play rather than therapy. The Emerging Tech Lab at Rancho Los Amigos National Rehabilitation Center contributed briefs on grabbers that do not require squeezing, and storage solutions for wheelchair users to reach phones and keys.

Makers submit designs over the next two months. The partner organizations then print selected models and test them for one month with the people who inspired the briefs. Feedback from those tests feeds into the final evaluation. Winning files go into open libraries and are distributed through volunteer networks already active in more than 70 countries.

That last part matters. Ayudame3D in Spain has distributed more than 1,000 3D-printed prosthetic arms. e-NABLE France has delivered over 200 customized 3D-printed hands. Makers Making Change, part of Canada's Neil Squire Society, says it has shipped more than 30,000 assistive devices. MakeGood, known for a fully 3D-printed children's wheelchair, is also a partner.

These are not hypothetical users. The briefs are small and precisely defined: could the missing part be printed so that someone would not have to ask for help? The answer, in many cases, is yes. This competition is Bambu Lab's attempt to connect its user base with the organizations already doing that work.

Submissions open September 16 on MakerWorld. There is no entry fee. If you have been looking for a reason to put your printer to use beyond benchy boats and phone stands, this is a practical place to start.