This new AI modeler can turn pictures into 3D sculptures in seconds

Stability AI’s Stable Fast 3D adds depth to pictures quicker than you can make a cup of coffee

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Remember in “The Simpsons” Halloween special when Homer walked through a portal and instantly became three-dimensional? Well, Stability AI has introduced a new tool that leverages AI to do just that.

The new Stable Fast 3D AI model can produce a 3D asset from a single image in about half a second, which is a staggering speed compared to the usual rendering system. And even if it takes more than a second and a single image to perfect the 3D model, there’s a huge potential demand for this kind of tool in everything from architecture to video games.

Stable Fast 3D produces a 3D model of an image that isn’t just a digital representation. The model’s high-quality UV unwrapped mesh ensures that textures are mapped accurately onto 3D models, while the reduced illumination entanglement in textures leads to more realistic and visually appealing assets. The result also includes options for colors and the material coating the object, as soft pale fur looks a lot different than a coating of aluminum foil.

Stills to Films

This isn’t Stability AI’s first 3D mode-maker, but it is much faster than the earlier SV3D model, which took up to 10 minutes. Stable Fast 3D could theoretically make close to1,200 models and variants in 10 minutes. But, the company can’t rest on its laurels as other generative AI developers experiment with similar ideas.OpenAI’s POINT-Emodel can make 3D models from text prompts, andAdobehas its own experiments that could be deployed to its Firefly service.

It’s easy to see why there might be interest in 3D asset makers at this level and speed. The reduction in time, and therefore money, in creating these assets would appeal to many designers. It could help produce digital environments for virtual reality and games, allow for experimentation in designing buildings and decorating rooms, and even give boutique toymakers a chance to play with ideas that translate to the real world without the expense of producing a lot of failed prototypes. Even shopping online could change as you might be able to browse through interactive, 3D views of products.

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Eric Hal Schwartz is a freelance writer for TechRadar with more than 15 years of experience covering the intersection of the world and technology. For the last five years, he served as head writer for Voicebot.ai and was on the leading edge of reporting on generative AI and large language models. He’s since become an expert on the products of generative AI models, such as OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Anthropic’s Claude, Google Gemini, and every other synthetic media tool. His experience runs the gamut of media, including print, digital, broadcast, and live events. Now, he’s continuing to tell the stories people want and need to hear about the rapidly evolving AI space and its impact on their lives. Eric is based in New York City.

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