Foundry has come to grips with the need to accelerate AI use in its tools and across VFX and animation pipelines in general. To that end, it has acquired Griptape, a Seattle start-up founded in 2023 by former AWS veterans. Griptape offers an enterprise-grade AI orchestration platform, which integrates seamlessly with a facility’s existing production infrastructure including render farms and management systems, and various creative tools. It simplifies management of multiple AI models and automated tasks so they work together in a repeatable and reliable sequence. With Griptape, users access AI models and agents through the creative tools they are already using regularly. Griptape’s open-source Python framework features a node-based visual interface, making it easy for artists to use.
Griptape, under new ownership. (Source: Foundry)
Foundry now has a firm grip on Griptape following its acquisition of the company, whose technology makes it easier for users to take advantage of AI capabilities in their workflows. Foundry also sees the move as an opportunity to get a stronger grip on AI implementation, as Griptape enables users of Foundry’s various products to take advantage of AI capabilities in their workflows.
In a nutshell, Griptape simplifies and coordinates the process of managing multiple AI models and automated tasks so they work together in a reliable, repeatable sequence, all within workflows that connect seamlessly with creative tools users are already using and familiar with. Consider, for instance, a multi-step VFX process whereby a segmentation model identifies characters in a shot, an image gen model is used to generate a background, and then a Python script sends the outputs of those steps to Nuke for compositing, Griptape acts as the glue that ensures the steps “talk” to one another and that the data reaches the artist’s DCC tool.
Griptape’s Python-based architecture enables seamless integration with existing production infrastructure including render farms and management systems.
While Foundry says it is planning to build strong integrations with its tools, especially Nuke, developers can easily integrate it with other tools from other companies. By integrating Griptape with DCC packages, artists can more efficiently leverage AI models and complex setups of multiple models within their creative context, managing those workflows without leaving the DCC software. So rather than switching between disconnected tools, artists access the AI capabilities directly through their regular toolsets.
As studios shift from experimentation to everyday production use, the need for better control of AI models has become critical, Foundry says. Griptape’s orchestration replaces ad-hoc tool switching, enabling artists to build custom AI pipelines using drag-and-drop nodes, which negates the need for them to possess extensive technical expertise. This reduces manual steps, increases consistency, and accelerates delivery times, Foundry says, while enabling artists to maintain creative control over the process. Moreover, it enables controlled access to rapidly evolving open-source and commercial AI models in a user-friendly framework, while maintaining the security and traceability required by major production environments.
Using Griptape Nodes. (Source: Foundry)
Griptape includes the following offerings:
According to Foundry, this acquisition accelerates its AI strategy by adding critical arrangement capabilities to complement the AI-powered features in its product portfolio.
“We’ve been investing in AI and ML capabilities for years, and many of our customers are already using AI-powered features daily. We are building the AI-first pipeline of the future—and Griptape is a critical piece of that foundation to accelerate our roadmap,” says Foundry CEO Jody Madden.
In 2021, Foundry introduced a new machine learning framework in Nuke 13 and released CopyCat, which allows artists to train their neural networks for whatever effect they need for their shot or sequence.
Griptape is built as an open, model-agnostic framework that integrates across industry pipelines. It supports Model Context Protocol (MCP), an open standard and open-source framework standardizing the way artificial intelligence systems like large language models integrate and share data with external tools, systems, and data sources, thereby enabling connection with tools like Autodesk Maya and Blender, alongside Foundry Nuke. Foundry says it will continue that agnosticism as it further develops the offering.
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