Nvidia announces new AI tools to “reimagine” metaverse

The chip maker said new features would help accelerate 3D workflows through its Omniverse platform.

Nvidia has announced a suite of new generative AI tools for users to experiment with on Omniverse, its real-time graphics collaboration platform.

“Animators, creators, and developers can use new AI-powered tools to reimagine 3D environments, simulations, and the metaverse – the 3D evolution of the internet,” Nvidia said in the blog post.

Omniverse is based on the Universal Scene Description (USD) format originally developed by Pixar Animation Studios. The tool was built to help creators – even those on different sides of the world – work on projects simultaneously in shared virtual spaces across multiple software suites.

Nvidia demonstrated new Omniverse features during a special virtual address at the Las Vegas annual Consumer Electronics Show (CES). It also announced the platform would now come preinstalled on Nvidia Studio laptops.

In addition, Omniverse is expanding with Blender enhancements and thousands of new, free-to-use USD assets, which the company said would help speed up the adoption of 3D workflows. Nvidia said new features would help meet growing metaverse demands.

While the demand for 3D skills is skyrocketing, learning it can be “pretty scary to some” and time-consuming, according to Jae Solina, a YouTube content creator also known as JSFilmz.

“But these new platform developments not only let creatives and technical professionals continue to work in their favorite 3D tools but also supercharge their craft and even use AI to assist them in their workflows,” Solina said.

Nvidia has also revealed the new RTX 4070 Ti graphics card at the CES event and RTX 40-series laptops. The RTX 4070 Ti card launches on January 5, starting at $799.

Laptops are coming in February, with RTX 4090 and RTX 4080 starting at $1,999 and RTX 4050, RTX 4060, and RTX 4070 at $999.