Meituan has invested in Smartto, a 3D printing company, to position itself in hardware sovereignty and bet on the creator economy and rapid prototyping, moving from food delivery to advanced manufacturing investment.
While the outside world still perceives Meituan through the lens of an algorithm-driven "bit" world, searching for growth limits in food delivery commissions and hotel-travel orders, Wang Xing's reach has long since extended into the construction of "atoms" in the physical world. Recently, the business registration changes at Shenzhen Intelligent派 Technology Co., Ltd. once again exposed the local-life giant's ambitions in hardcore manufacturing. According to Tianyancha data, Meituan's affiliate Hanhai Information Technology (Shanghai) Co., Ltd., together with investors such as Shenzhen Capital Group, has formally taken a stake in this hidden champion focused on consumer-grade 3D printing. The registered capital increased from 6.56 million RMB to approximately 7.31 million RMB—a seemingly modest financing round, but in fact a key strategic positioning move by capital in early 2026 targeting the foundation of the "global creator economy."
Intelligent派 Technology, better known by its overseas brand ELEGOO, operates within Shenzhen's global hardware innovation hub. It is not a traffic darling that relies on PPT-driven fundraising, but rather a typical "tough player" that has carved out its position through export-driven growth and extreme cost control. The photopolymerization 3D printing track it has entered is at a technological inflection point, transitioning from a geek toy to a professional-grade production tool.
Why would Meituan place this bet now? The surface-level logic may be financial investment—seeking high-quality assets with global brand capabilities—but the deeper rationale lies in Meituan's attempt to establish its own "hardware feedback loop." In the context of 2026, Meituan's autonomous delivery vehicles and automated sorting robots have entered large-scale operational phases. For these complex hardware systems, traditional mold-based manufacturing involves long lead times and high costs, failing to meet the demands of rapid iteration in engineering. 3D printing, as an additive manufacturing technology, inherently possesses the attributes of small-batch, high-flexibility validation. By taking a stake in Intelligent派, Meituan is effectively securing a long-term "fast prototyping" ticket at the very upstream of its supply chain.
A more sober perspective is that Meituan is betting on a future of "household factory-ization." As artificial intelligence aggressively dismantles design barriers, the modeling and manufacturing authority once reserved for professional engineers is spilling over to ordinary consumers. Intelligent派's 3D printers and laser engravers are, at their core, physical actuators for personal creative power. When Meituan uses this visible equity penetration through Tianyancha to infiltrate the industrial chain, it is essentially rehearsing a new commercial landscape: in the future, what people order on Meituan may no longer be finished goods, but rather design model files, which are then instantly printed at home by Intelligent派 devices.
This investment logic also reflects a shift in the aesthetic preferences of local capital such as Shenzhen Capital Group. In the shareholder list shown on Tianyancha, the presence of institutions like Shenzhen Capital Group—which carry strong industry-support characteristics—signals that Intelligent派 has completed its identity leap from "export cross-border e-commerce" to "hardcore technology entity." In 2026, pure low-price dumping no longer resonates with capital; only players who command optical foundations, proprietary slicing software, and material science sovereignty can protect their gross margins in an increasingly competitive global hardware market.
The driving forces within the interest chain should not be overlooked either. The reason Intelligent派 can attract Meituan is its exceptionally high brand moat and community stickiness built in overseas markets. On TikTok and YouTube, ELEGOO's enthusiasts form a vast data feedback pool. For Meituan, this overseas market penetration serves as an important reference as it seeks growth curves beyond its domestic base. Meituan's hardware layout under the Hanhai Information shell resource reflects its management's deep anxiety surrounding the grand proposition of "managing atoms with bits."
The 3D printing industry has already moved past the extensive phase of pure parameter competition. The competitive logic of 2026 lies in who can elevate print success rates from eighty percent to ninety-nine percent through algorithmic optimization, and who can reduce resin material costs to the scale of ordinary paper. The business scope of Intelligent派 as shown on Tianyancha—ranging from software development to mechanical equipment sales—outlines a typical full-stack self-developed path. This approach is heavyweight, but in today's era of geopolitical rivalry and frequent supply chain uncertainties, it constitutes the most formidable moat.
The endgame of commercial competition has never been about whose business plan sounds more compelling, but rather who can seize the right to define the physical world earlier. Meituan's investment in Intelligent派 is an attempt to deeply integrate its algorithmic capabilities with Shenzhen's hardware supply chain. This pivot from "food delivery platform" to "advanced manufacturing investor" tears off the last lightweight-asset label from an internet company.
While all the correct platitudes are being debated, companies like Intelligent派—which democratize productivity through technological empowerment—are quietly reshaping the logic of wealth creation. Meituan's choice at this moment is both a tribute to this trend and a preemptive defensive move for future distribution rights in the physical world. Within the ever-shifting equity map visible on Tianyancha lies this internet company's most authentic and sober evolutionary ambition: it not only delivers every meal, but also aims to participate in manufacturing every gear in this physical world.
