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Autodesk launches new versions of products
MUMBAI: 3D design, engineering and entertainment software company, Autodesk, has released 2012 versions of its digital entertainment creation software and middleware.
These versions enable interactive workflows, help users manage complexity and provide new creative tools.
Autodesk products have been used to create movies like “Black Swan”; video games such as “Medal of Honor”; and television shows such as“Glee”.
Autodesk India and SAARC head M&E Arun D’Souza said, “Movie, video game and television audiences are demanding more sophisticated content, which is causing production complexity to outpace budgets. To remain competitive, studios must improve production efficiency and maximize their creative capabilities.”
D’Souza added that the company has enhanced interoperability and simplified pipeline integration. It has also provided new creative tools for modern production trends like virtual moviemaking and stereoscopic 3D production.
The 2012 Autodesk entertainment creation suites give artists and production facilities access to a range of creative toolsets.
The products of the entertainment creation suites 2012 include Autodesk 3ds Max, Autodesk Maya, Autodesk Softimage and Autodesk Mudbox.
The company’s creative finishing software for film, television and commercial post production product software, Autodesk flame premium 2012, aims to combine visual effects and finishing tools with real-time colour grading in a single solution.
Its features include new tools that help artists integrate ultrarealistic 3D lighting effects into composites and effects tools for finishing stereoscopic 3D projects, enhanced finishing workflows with CG pipelines.
The other creation is Autodesk Smoke 2012 software. It offers a timeline-based, all-in-one creative solution for professional
finishing on the Mac. The Smoke toolset spans colour correction, compositing, 3D visual effects and stereoscopic 3D. It features a complementary workflow with Apple Final Cut Pro.
It offers a redesigned 3D lighting system and Flame FX, a new set of tools for common finishing tasks, featuring damage, deform, edge detect and pixel spread.
The company’s game middleware technology aims to help solving known runtime challenges, enabling programmers to focus on high-impact areas of development. According to the company, the new middleware offers various enhancements:
An enhanced API (application programming interface) in Autodesk Beast 2012 global illumination middleware enables developers to integrate the eRnsT interactive lighting preview tool into custom game level editors.
Autodesk HumanIK 2012 character animation middleware now supports the next generation portable entertainment system (codename: NGP) from Sony Computer Entertainment, as well as the Apple iOS mobile platform, enabling realistic character animation on the latest mobile gaming devices.
Autodesk Kynapse 2012 artificial intelligence middleware focuses on improving runtime performance and making advanced features easier to use.
Applications
With 57 per cent single new users, Ashley Madison rebrands as discreet dating platform
Platform says majority of new members now identify as single
INDIA: Ashley Madison is shedding the “married-dating” label that defined it for two decades, repositioning itself as a platform for discreet dating in what it calls the post-social media age.
The rebrand, unveiled in India on 27 February, 2026, marks a structural shift in business model and identity. Once synonymous with married dating, the company now describes itself as the “premier destination for discreet dating” under a new tagline: Where Desire Meets Discretion.
The pivot is data-driven. Internal figures show that 57 per cent of global sign-ups between 1 January and 31 December, 2025 identified as single: a notable departure from the platform’s married core. The company argues that its community has already evolved beyond its original positioning.
“In an age where our lives have been constantly put on public display, privacy has become the new luxury,” said Ashley Madison chief strategy officer Paul Keable. He framed the platform’s offering as “ethical discretion” for singles, separated, divorced and non-monogamous users seeking private connections.
The shift also taps into wider digital fatigue. A global survey conducted by YouGov for Ashley Madison, covering 13,071 adults across Australia, Brazil, Canada, Germany, India, Italy, Mexico, Spain, Switzerland, the UK and the US, found mounting discomfort with hyper-public online lives.
Among dating app users, 30 per cent cited constant swiping and messaging as a source of fatigue, while 24 per cent pointed to pressure to curate public-facing profiles and early personal disclosure. Some 27 per cent said fears of screenshots or information being shared contributed to exhaustion; an equal share cited unwanted attention.
The retreat from oversharing appears broader. According to the survey, 46 per cent of adults actively try to keep most aspects of their life private online. Only 8 per cent feel comfortable sharing most aspects publicly, while 35 per cent say they are becoming more selective about what they disclose.
Ashley Madison is betting that this cultural recalibration towards controlled visibility can be monetised. By doubling down on privacy infrastructure and reframing itself around discretion rather than infidelity, the company is attempting to convert reputational baggage into a premium proposition.
