Developer Uses Claude to Open-Source an Adobe-Like Software Suite, Still in Early Stages

ME News report, October 8 (UTC+8), Beating AI Bulletin: ArtCraft founder Brandon Thomas, leveraging Claude Opus 5.5, has open-sourced seven alternatives to Adobe creative software, all written from scratch in Rust: 1. PhotoCraft: Alternative to Photoshop for image editing 2. VectorCraft: Alternative to Illustrator for vector design 3. FilmCraft: Alternative to Premiere Pro for video editing 4. LightCraft: Alternative to Lightroom for photo management and color grading 5. EffectCraft: Alternative to After Effects for video effects and animation 6. DesignCraft: Alternative to InDesign for publishing layout 7. PdfCraft: Alternative to Acrobat Pro for PDF editing and processing These applications are entirely free and open-source, developed for macOS, Windows, Linux, and browsers. They aim to replicate Adobe’s interfaces, tools, and keyboard shortcuts, and can integrate with AI agents via MCP, enabling tools like Claude to directly manipulate software and modify files. However, these apps are still in early development. Although PhotoCraft has implemented all menu commands found in Photoshop, the official team acknowledges that actual functionality currently matches Photoshop’s capabilities at less than 50%. Testing reveals basic masking and color grading are functional, but operations like free transform remain unstable. Numerous users on Hacker News have reported missing features and usability issues. Thomas initially claimed he would achieve feature parity with Adobe within a month, but later revised his estimate, suggesting full functionality may take several months. He admits the software is far from mature and invites community contributions to fix bugs, with plans to introduce a bug bounty program. (Source: BlockBeats)