Cover ArtCraft’s PhotoCraft software, which closely resembles Adobe Photoshop (Photo: ArtCraft)
ArtCraft’s PhotoCraft software, which closely resembles Adobe Photoshop (Photo: ArtCraft)
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As an open-source suite of creative tools built in the programming language Rust—with help from AI—the alpha-stage ArtCraft apps mimic the Adobe Creative Suite, Microsoft Office’s Word and Excel, and Figma
For years, professional graphic designers have toiled under the weight of monthly subscription fees and mandatory cloud integrations—not to mention eye-watering and controversial cancellation fees. In 2026, the software giant Adobe agreed to a US$150 million settlement with the US Department of Justice over how it handled fees and cancellations. (Adobe denied wrongdoing.)
Taking aim at these issues, in October 2026, an American software developer named Brandon Thomas released ArtCraft: a family of free, open-source desktop apps written in the programming language Rust that closely imitate Adobe’s best-known tools. In a Reddit post announcing ArtCraft, Thomas explained he built the tools with Anthropic’s Claude Opus 5.5. “If you’re worried this is just some one-off flash in the pan that will die, it isn’t: I’m not just some casual vibe coder,” he wrote. The developer is also taking on the Microsoft Office Suite, more recently releasing apps intended to replace the likes of Word and Excel.
Dubbed the “Adobe Killer” by prominent technology commentators and open-source software advocates, ArtCraft has gained traction across tech publications. In Hong Kong, it’s become popular among local designers and developer groups, with PC publications calling it “free Adobe”. While early builds remain undeniably rough around the edges, Tatler is here to help unpack burning questions about ArtCraft.
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Above ArtCraft’s FilmCraft software, which closely resembles Adobe Premiere (Photo: ArtCraft)
ArtCraft’s FilmCraft software, which closely resembles Adobe Premiere (Photo: ArtCraft)
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What can ArtCraft do?
The project now offers 13 apps, which copy Adobe’s menus, panels and shortcuts closely—the main appeal for designers who don’t want to relearn their workflow. They run natively on macOS, Windows and Linux, and most can run in a web browser. The apps also run offline with no account required.
The suite began with seven apps, each modelled on an Adobe counterpart:
- PhotoCraft (Photoshop): layered image editing, with PSD and PSB support
- VectorCraft (Illustrator): vector illustration
- FilmCraft (Premiere Pro): video editing
- LightCraft (Lightroom, not Lightroom Classic): photo library and raw development
- EffectCraft (After Effects): motion graphics
- DesignCraft (InDesign): page layout
- PdfCraft (Acrobat): PDF tools
Above ArtCraft’s apps—heavily inspired by Adobe and Microsoft offerings (Photo: ArtCraft)
ArtCraft’s apps—heavily inspired by Adobe and Microsoft offerings (Photo: ArtCraft)
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Then, the developer announced Microsoft Office, CAD, design and audio apps:
- WordCraft (Microsoft Word): word processing, with .docx support
- GridCraft (Excel): spreadsheets
- DeckCraft (PowerPoint): presentations
- FigCraft (Figma): wireframing for designs
- CADCraft (AutoCAD): 2D drafting, with DXF support and DWG handled through a third-party library
- SoundCraft (Pro Tools): audio recording, editing and mixing
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Above ArtCraft’s WordCraft software, which closely resembles Microsoft Word (Photo: ArtCraft)
ArtCraft’s WordCraft software, which closely resembles Microsoft Word (Photo: ArtCraft)
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Is ArtCraft legal?
Nobody knows yet. Thomas describes the apps as “clean-room” reimplementations, meaning they were built from public file specifications and observed behaviour rather than Adobe’s code, and the project’s instructions to its AI tools forbid copying or disassembling Adobe software. But that claim hasn’t been independently verified yet. The tech publication PetaPixel called the label “fanciful”, and the extent to which AI wrote the code is unclear; in a separate interview with science and tech website Futurism, a co-founder described the process as having “reverse-engineered” the Adobe tools.
In principle, a software function or a general interface idea cannot be copyrighted, which is why independent developers can build compatible alternatives. (For example, a soft drink isn’t infringing on Coca-Cola just by being brown and fizzy.) But how closely ArtCraft copies Adobe’s look and layout might become an issue; and clean-room methods address copyright, not patents. Adobe has not commented publicly, and no lawsuits are known at the time of writing.
How does ArtCraft work?
Above ArtCraft’s DesignCraft software, which closely resembles Adobe InDesign (Photo: ArtCraft)
ArtCraft’s DesignCraft software, which closely resembles Adobe InDesign (Photo: ArtCraft)
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ArtCraft’s apps are native programmes rather than web-based wrappers, so they use your computer’s graphics hardware directly. That is the basis for the project’s claims of fast start-up and smooth rendering, though we haven’t benchmarked them. Everything runs locally, so your files stay on your machine. The project also describes the apps as controllable by AI assistants for repetitive tasks such as batch processing and exports.
Is ArtCraft really better than Adobe?
Above ArtCraft’s PhotoCraft software, which closely resembles Adobe Photoshop—in this case, with the ability to layer styles (Photo: ArtCraft)
ArtCraft’s PhotoCraft software, which closely resembles Adobe Photoshop—in this case, with the ability to layer styles (Photo: ArtCraft)
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No, not yet, and the developers say so themselves. Only PhotoCraft and PdfCraft are labelled “early alpha”; the rest are still in development, while DesignCraft is described as pre-alpha. Alpha testing is the first phase of formal testing in software development.
Reviewers flag some consistent gaps and bugs—to be expected with largely AI-written software. For one, PhotoCraft does not support Photoshop plug-ins or scripting. One pixel artist told media outlet Decrypt that PhotoCraft was “completely unusable”, and the design publication Creative Bloq, which tried the suite, found “some big problems”. Free alternatives such as Gimp, Inkscape, Krita and DaVinci Resolve’s free version are more mature.
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Why is ArtCraft popular now?
ArtCraft arrives amid growing resentment of subscription pricing, and growing interest in software that runs locally. What makes this project notable is the speed: Thomas and his small team produced early versions of a dozen flagship applications in a few weeks, aided by AI. Whether the software presents a credible threat to Adobe and Microsoft, or if it will just serve as a viral moment, depends on the next update.
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Cat Wang is an editor at Tatler Asia based in Hong Kong, where she covers business, wealth, innovation, and impact. Previously, she was a Forbes Asia reporter and assistant editor of the Forbes Asia 100 to Watch list, spotlighting startups and small companies on the rise across the Asia-Pacific. She began her career as a trainee reporter at the South China Morning Post, Hong Kong’s newspaper of record. Born in New York City, she graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles, with a B.A. in political science.
