Creative software giant Adobe has officially announced the closure of its 2D animation creation tool Adobe Animate, which has a history of over 25 years, marking the company's full shift of strategic focus to the field of artificial intelligence.

AIbase report pointed out that the software will stop service on March 1, 2026. Enterprise customers can extend technical support until 2029, while regular users will only have support until 2027. Although Adobe acknowledges the important position of Animate in the animation ecosystem, the company has decided not to release a 2025 version as new technologies and AI models emerge. Users who have already downloaded the software can continue to use it, but they will no longer receive updates in the future.

Adobe (1)

This move has caused strong reactions in the creative community. Many users who rely on this software for professional creation or teaching have expressed anger and anxiety on social platforms. Some developers have even publicly pleaded with Adobe to open source the software rather than abandon it directly.

Unfortunately, Adobe currently has no direct one-to-one alternative solution, and it only recommends users to combine the Puppet tool from Adobe After Effects or the basic animation features of Adobe Express to meet some needs. This has forced many animators to turn to third-party competitors such as Moho Animation and Toon Boom Harmony.