Anycubic Plans Multicolor Versions of Thingiverse Models, With Designers Opting In

Anycubic plans to take selected Thingiverse models, adapt them for multicolor printing and turn their STL files into 3MFs for compatible printers. For makers who have spent time painting color regions in a slicer, that could mean less preparation before a favorite design reaches the build plate.

The files are part of an exclusive partnership between Anycubic and Thingiverse. A dedicated section on Anycubic’s Makeronline platform is scheduled to launch on November 17, 2026, according to Anycubic’s announcement. The company says the collaboration will give its users access to Thingiverse’s library of more than two million models, but only selected designs will receive the multicolor treatment. It has not said how many converted files will be available initially.

What changes in the file

An STL gives a slicer the shape of an object, but not the color or material information needed for a multicolor design. The 3MF Consortium’s format FAQ explains that 3MF can carry geometry and color data together. That makes it useful when someone wants to pass along a model with more information than its shape alone.

The distinction matters here: simply saving an STL as a 3MF would not decide which parts of a model should be red, blue or green. Anycubic says it will adapt selected designs for multicolor printing as well as convert them. The intended benefit is to reduce manual setup, not just change the filename extension.

There are practical questions for anyone hoping to use the files. Anycubic’s announcement refers to compatible printers without listing them, and it does not detail the contents of each prepared 3MF. Makers will still need to check that a file suits their printer, materials and intended result. A prepared color layout is a useful starting point, not proof that every print will come out as expected.

Creators have a choice

Thingiverse CEO Romain Kidd told Tom’s Hardware that designers will need to opt into the program. The outlet also reports that the companies intend to preserve existing Creative Commons and noncommercial licensing terms in converted files. Kidd described the goal as something close to a one-click experience for Anycubic users—not a demonstrated result from the upcoming integration.

In a Thingiverse community post, the platform said it planned to respect creators’ rights and licenses and showcase their work. The available announcements do not explain how the opt-in process will work or how attribution will appear alongside each converted file. Those details will matter to designers deciding whether to participate.

The companies call the deal exclusive, but the announcement does not spell out the scope of that exclusivity. Nor does it establish that the entire Thingiverse catalog will become multicolor-ready. For now, the useful promise is narrower: selected, participating designs may arrive in a form that saves Anycubic owners some slicer work. The November launch should show how broad that selection is—and how well the workflow serves both the people printing models and the people who made them.