Pixar, Adobe, Apple, Autodesk and Nvidia form alliance to support OpenUSD and promote open standards for 3D content

The alliance aims to standardize the 3D ecosystem by advancing the capabilities of Open Universal Scene Description (OpenUSD). By fostering greater interoperability of 3D tools and data, the alliance will enable developers and content creators to describe, compose and simulate large-scale 3D projects and create an increasingly broad range of products and 3D services.

Created by Pixar Animation Studios, OpenUSD is a powerful 3D scene description technology that provides robust interoperability between tools, data and workflows. Already known for its ability to collaboratively capture artistic expression and streamline the production of cinematic content, the power and flexibility of OpenUSD make it an ideal content platform to meet the needs of new industries and applications.

The alliance will develop written specifications detailing the characteristics of OpenUSD. This will enable greater compatibility and wider adoption, integration and implementation, and allow other standards bodies to include them in their specifications. The Linux Foundation's JDF was chosen to host the project because it will enable open, efficient and effective development of the OpenUSD specifications, while providing a path to recognition by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO).

AOUSD will also provide the primary forum for collaboratively defining technology improvements across the industry. The alliance invites a wide range of companies and organizations to join and participate in shaping the future of OpenUSD.

For Steve May, Chief Technology Officer at Pixar and President of AOUSD: “USD was invented by Pixar and is the technological foundation of our cutting-edge animation pipeline. OpenUSD is based on years of research and application in filmmaking at Pixar. We made this project open-source in 2016, and OpenUSD's influence now extends beyond film, visual effects and animation and into other industries that increasingly rely on 3D data for media exchange. With the announcement of AUSD, we highlight the next exciting step: the continued evolution of OpenUSD as a technology and its position as an international standard. »

For Guido Quaroni, Senior Director of Engineering, 3D&I at Adobe: “At Adobe, we believe in providing artists with a set of flexible and powerful solutions that work across a variety of devices. Leveraging a common representation of 3D data during the creation process multiplies the value provided by each software package and device. OpenUSD was created to be one of these 'multipliers' and we are excited to see a diverse group of companies coming together to support this innovative and open technology. »

For Mike Rockwell, vice president of Apple's Vision Products Group: “OpenUSD will help accelerate the next generation of augmented reality experiences, from art creation to content delivery, and produce an ever-widening range of spatial computing applications. Apple actively contributed to the development of USD, which is an essential technology for the revolutionary visionOS platform, as well as the new Reality Composer Pro development tool. We look forward to helping it develop into a widely adopted standard. »

For Gordon Bradley, Fellow, Media & Entertainment, Autodesk: “Whether you're building synthetic worlds or digital twins or considering the 3D web, content creators need a consistent way to collaborate and share data across tools, services and platforms. Autodesk is pleased to support the Alliance for OpenUSD, which drives 3D interoperability for visual effects, animation and beyond, and supports our vision of helping customers design and create a better world. »

For Guy Martin, Director of Open Source and Standards at NVIDIA: “OpenUSD gives 3D developers, artists and designers a comprehensive foundation for tackling industrial, digital content creation and large-scale simulation workloads with broad multi-application interoperability. This alliance is a unique opportunity to accelerate OpenUSD collaboration globally by building formal standards across industries and initiatives to realize 3D worlds and industrial digitalization.”