The Alliance for OpenUSD (AOUSD) is an open, non-profit organization that stewards the standardisation, development, evolution, and growth of OpenUSD for interoperable 3-D content workflows.[1][2] It operates as a project of the Joint Development Foundation (JDF), an affiliate of the Linux Foundation.[1]
AOUSD was announced on 1 August 2023 by founding members Pixar, Adobe, Apple, Autodesk and NVIDIA, together with the Joint Development Foundation, to foster global collaboration around OpenUSD and to advance 3-D tool and data interoperability.[1] In December 2023 the alliance published a two-year roadmap for a written core specification for OpenUSD, targeting final approval by the end of 2025.[3]
On 20 September 2023, Guy Martin briefed the Metaverse Standards Forum’s “3D Asset Interoperability using USD & glTF” working group about the alliance’s goals and governance.[4]
Mission and objectives
AOUSD develops written specifications for OpenUSD to enable compatibility and wider adoption, and provides a venue for collaborative definition of enhancements to the technology.[1][2] The project selected JDF to enable efficient, open specification development and to provide a path to recognition through the ISO.[1]
Organization and governance
AOUSD is hosted by the Joint Development Foundation and governed by a steering committee that includes one representative from each founding member and elected representatives of the general membership. Steve May, Chief Technology Officer at Pixar, is the initial chairperson selected by the steering committee.[5] In November 2024, the alliance added rotating seats for general members to the steering committee, electing Mark Tucker (SideFX) and Sean Snyders (Trimble) as the first rotating members.[6]
Working groups and activities
AOUSD conducts technical work through Working Groups (WGs) with published charters. As of 2025, the alliance lists the following WGs: Core Specification, Materials, Geometry, Marketing, and Physics.[7][8][9] The Materials and Geometry WGs were launched in March 2024, alongside a formal liaison with the Academy Software Foundation (ASWF) to coordinate on USD and MaterialX.[10] In November 2024, a Physics WG was established to build a normative specification for physics schemas, beginning with rigid bodies.[6]
AOUSD also maintains public Interest Groups (IGs) where contributors (at no cost) can participate and provide recommendations to WGs. IGs announced in 2024–2025 include Architecture, Engineering, Construction & Operations (AECO), Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI), USD Emerging Geometry, Industrial & Engineering Digital Twin (IEDT), Web, and Build (developer tooling and build systems).[11][12][13]
AOUSD offers two primary participation levels: General Members (paid) who work in WGs, and Contributors (no cost) who participate in IGs. AOUSD states that members must also be members of the Linux Foundation; the annual General Member fee is US$10,000.[2][7][11]
Community
The alliance hosts a public discussion forum at forum.aousd.org for community engagement around OpenUSD topics.[14]
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