Arnold
Arnold is a Monte Carlo ray tracing renderer for film, TV, VFX, games, and design visualization, originally developed by SolidAngle (founded 2005) and now owned by Autodesk, sold standalone or via the Media & Entertainment Collection to professional 3D studios worldwide.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2005
- HeadquartersLondon, United Kingdom
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Arnold does
Arnold is an advanced Monte Carlo ray tracing renderer used to generate final-quality 3D imagery in film, television, animation, visual effects, games, and design visualization. Originally developed by SolidAngle Ltd. (founded in London in 2005) and acquired by Autodesk in 2017, the software's technology stack centers on a physically based, unbiased ray tracing core with support for subsurface scattering, hair and fur, motion blur, volumetric rendering, instancing, and a parallel GPU path-tracing implementation (Arnold GPU). The product is integrated with major digital content creation tools including Maya, 3ds Max, Houdini, Katana, and Cinema 4D.
Arnold is monetized as a subscription product under Autodesk, offered on monthly, annual, and multi-year terms with a free trial, and is sold both standalone and as a component of the Media & Entertainment Collection. Reference customers include Unit Image, Untold Studios, Qvisten Animation, Megalis VFX, and Pixomondo — studios spanning European VFX/animation and global feature work. Standalone revenue, headcount, and management information are not disclosed publicly because Arnold operates as a product line within Autodesk (NASDAQ: ADSK) rather than as a separate reporting entity.
Arnold firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Arnold
- Legal name
- Autodesk, Inc.
- Website
- https://arnoldrenderer.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2005
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Arnold is a Monte Carlo ray tracing renderer for film, TV, VFX, games, and design visualization, originally developed by SolidAngle (founded 2005) and now owned by Autodesk, sold standalone or via the Media & Entertainment Collection to professional 3D studios worldwide.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Arnold industry classification
Industry- Product category
- 3D Rendering Software
- NAICS
- Audio and Video Equipment Manufacturing (334310)
- SIC
- Services-Motion Picture & Video Tape Production (7812)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Look Development, Shading & Lighting (Animation) (MPAHACAI)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Simulation & FX Animation (Cloth, Hair, Particles) (MPAHACAH), 3D Character Animation (MPAHACAB), Immersive/Interactive Animation (AR/VR/Real-Time) (MPAHACAN)
Keywords
Where Arnold is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- London
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Markets served
Arnold business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Subscription Licensing: Monthly, annual, and multi-year subscription plans providing access to Arnold software and the three previous versions. Customers receive access to downloads via their Autodesk Account after subscribing.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Monthly | Monthly subscription starting at listed price |
| Subscription | Annual | Annual subscription with money-back guarantee |
| Subscription | Multi-year contract | Multi-year contract option |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels5 records
Arnold product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Arnold is an advanced Monte Carlo ray tracing renderer used to produce professional-grade 3D renders for film, television, games, and design visualization. It supports seamless CPU and GPU rendering, subsurface scattering, ray-traced hair and fur, 3D motion blur, volumetric effects, and instances, and integrates natively with Autodesk Maya and 3ds Max for real-time previews. The product is sold as a standalone subscription or as part of the Media & Entertainment Collection bundle.
Product overview
Arnold is a standalone Monte Carlo ray tracing renderer for 3D characters and scenes, available as an individual subscription or as part of the Media & Entertainment Collection bundle. The collection includes Arnold alongside Maya, 3ds Max, and five additional products, providing an integrated workflow for film, TV, and games production.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Arnold GPU: GPU rendering component of Arnold that allows switching between CPU and GPU rendering
Products and services
- Autodesk Arnold Advanced Monte Carlo ray tracing renderer sold as a standalone subscription for producing professional-grade 3D renders with full artistic control. Supports CPU and GPU rendering, subsurface scattering, hair/fur, motion blur, volumes, and instances, and integrates natively with Maya and 3ds Max. Aimed at film, TV, games, and design visualization studios.
- Media & Entertainment Collection
Quantifiable outcome
- Multiple ambiances can be generated from a single render, increasing efficiency
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Arnold
Customer profileNamed customers4 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Arnold technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature6 records
Arnold partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- MayacoreArnold integrates natively with Autodesk Maya, providing real-time preview capabilities and seamless workflow for 3D artists. Users can see high-quality previews of their projects right in Maya without breaking creative flow.
- 3ds MaxcoreArnold integrates natively with Autodesk 3ds Max, offering real-time preview capabilities and production-ready rendering tools within the 3D modeling and animation software.
Scale indicators1 record
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Arnold competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Redshift (Maxon): Redshift is a GPU-accelerated biased renderer tightly integrated with Maxon's Cinema 4D, plus Maya, 3ds Max, Blender, and Houdini plugins. It competes head-to-head with Arnold GPU for speed-sensitive production and VFX work, especially inside C4D-led studios.
- OctaneRender (OTOY): OctaneRender is a GPU-only unbiased path-tracing renderer with strong DCC plugin support. It targets the same high-end, GPU-accelerated rendering niche as Arnold GPU, particularly in design visualization and look development workflows.
- V-Ray (Chaos): V-Ray is a leading commercial physically-based renderer with broad DCC integration (3ds Max, Maya, SketchUp, Revit, etc.). It is one of Arnold's closest competitors across architectural visualization, product design, and VFX, offering a comparable subscription-based model.
- RenderMan (Pixar Animation Studios): RenderMan is Pixar's production-proven Monte Carlo/path-tracing renderer used across feature animation and VFX. It directly competes with Arnold for feature-film and high-end episodic rendering work, and both target the same Maya/3ds Max-style studio pipelines.
- Cycles (Blender Foundation): Cycles is Blender's open-source path-tracing renderer offering production-capable CPU and GPU rendering at no license cost. It competes directly with Arnold in animation, VFX, and motion graphics, especially among studios standardizing on Blender.
Emerging players
- Unity (Unity Technologies): Unity is a real-time 3D platform used for games, film previsualization, and increasingly for animated and virtual production work. It encroaches on Arnold's addressable market where studios shift rendering to real-time engines.
- Karma (SideFX Houdini): Karma is SideFX's path-tracing renderer built into Houdini, which is heavily used in VFX and feature animation. It is a partial competitor to Arnold in Houdini-led FX, lighting, and look development pipelines.
Others
- Foundry: Foundry produces Nuke, Katana, and Mari, key tools in the VFX and animation pipeline alongside renderers like Arnold. While it does not directly compete as a renderer, its tools are often deployed in the same studios and shape renderer choice.
- SideFX Houdini: SideFX's Houdini is a dominant tool for FX, lighting, and procedural animation in feature VFX. Its Karma renderer and pipeline integration position it as adjacent infrastructure that competes for studio pipeline budgets alongside Arnold.
Broad incumbents
- Unreal Engine (Epic Games): Unreal Engine is a real-time 3D engine increasingly used for virtual production, in-camera VFX, and final-pixel rendering. While not a direct offline renderer, it competes with Arnold for look development and a growing share of final-frame work in episodic TV and games cinematics.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Arnold social profiles
Digital presenceArnold financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Arnold leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Arnold funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Arnold M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Arnold
What does Arnold do?
Arnold is an advanced Monte Carlo ray tracing renderer used to produce professional-grade 3D renders for film, television, games, and design visualization. It supports seamless CPU and GPU rendering, subsurface scattering, ray-traced hair and fur, 3D motion blur, volumetric effects, and instances, and integrates natively with Autodesk Maya and 3ds Max for real-time previews. The product is sold as a standalone subscription or as part of the Media & Entertainment Collection bundle.
Is Arnold a public or private company?
Arnold is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was Arnold founded?
Arnold was founded in 2005. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Arnold based?
Arnold is headquartered in London, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does Arnold make money?
One revenue line is on record: subscription Licensing.
Who are Arnold's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Redshift (Maxon), OctaneRender (OTOY), V-Ray (Chaos), RenderMan (Pixar Animation Studios) and Cycles (Blender Foundation). Emerging players are Unity (Unity Technologies) and Karma (SideFX Houdini). Others are Foundry and SideFX Houdini. Unreal Engine (Epic Games) is listed as a broad incumbent.
Does Arnold have an API?
No public API is recorded for Arnold.
What industry is Arnold in?
Arnold's product category is 3D Rendering Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAHACAI, Look Development, Shading & Lighting (Animation), with a secondary code of MPAHACAH, Simulation & FX Animation (Cloth, Hair, Particles). Its NAICS code is 334310 and its SIC code is 7812.