The AI startup Odyssey is developing a tool called Explorer, which utilizes artificial intelligence technology to transform text or images into 3D renderings.
The tool operates similarly to the world models recently demonstrated by DeepMind, World Labs, and the Israeli startup Decart. Users can simply input descriptions like "Japanese garden, lush greenery," and Explorer will generate an interactive real-time scene.
Odyssey states that the Explorer tool is particularly well-suited for creating realistic scenes because the underlying AI system is trained on real-world landscapes captured by the company’s custom-designed 360-degree backpack camera system. Users can import any scene generated by Explorer into creative tools such as Unreal Engine, Blender, and Adobe After Effects for post-editing. Explorer employs Gaussian splatting technology, a mature volumetric rendering technique that can reconstruct realistic scenes, and this technology is widely supported in computer graphics tools.
Generated Examples:
Although Explorer is still in its early stages, Odyssey is excited about the 3D detail and realism it can achieve, believing it has significant potential for applications in live-action films, hyper-realistic games, and new forms of entertainment. However, the company also acknowledges that there are some limitations with Explorer at present, such as an average generation time of 10 minutes per scene, lower resolution of generated scenes, and occasional visual artifacts.
Odyssey has made Explorer available to several production companies, including Garden Studios in the UK, and a group of independent artists. Interested users can apply for testing on Odyssey's blog. For creators in the video game and film industries, tools like Explorer may provoke differing opinions. A recent Wired survey found that game studios like Activision Blizzard are using AI to cut costs, increase productivity, and compensate for employee turnover. Additionally, a study commissioned by the Animation Guild in 2024 estimated that by 2026, over 100,000 film and animation-related jobs in the U.S. will be impacted by AI.
Nonetheless, Odyssey emphasizes its commitment to collaborating with creative professionals rather than replacing them. To this end, the company announced that Pixar co-founder and former president of Walt Disney Animation Studios Ed Catmull has joined its board and made an investment. Odyssey stated: "Generating world models is one of the newest and least explored important areas in artificial intelligence. We are eager to build worlds that can self-generate and are indistinguishable from reality, where new stories can be born and reshaped, and where humans and machine intelligence can interact for fun or purpose."
One of Odyssey's co-founders, Oliver Cameron, previously served as Vice President of Product at Cruise, while Jeff Hawkin was a founding researcher at Wayve. So far, Odyssey has raised $27 million from investors including EQT Ventures, GV, and Air Street Capital.
Project Entry: https://odyssey.systems/introducing-explorer
Key Points:
🌍 The Explorer tool developed by Odyssey can transform text and images into 3D renderings.
🎨 This tool supports importing generated scenes into creative software for post-editing.
🤝 Odyssey is committed to collaborating with creative professionals and advancing the development of generative world models.
