AbstractThe progress of laser sintering of ceramics is reviewed by focusing on the principles and the potentials of this new technique as one member of a family of additive manufacturing technologies. After a brief introduction of the technology and the interaction between laser beam and ceramics, the characters of laser sintered ceramics are discussed in detail. The unique opportunities of achieving hierarchically structured heterogeneities and non-equilibrium phase assemblages in bulk ceramics are illustrated. It reveals that the laser sintering is not only a feasible technology allowing net shape production of customized 3D parts in a single manufacturing operation but also a promising way for developing ceramics with structures that can hardly be made by conventional processing methods.