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“Comp” enters public alpha

Bela Beier
16.07.2026
Comp enters alpha on Windows and Apple silicon, with an optional AI worker and a firm warning against production use.
Video editing interface with a dark workspace, MEET branding visible at top and COMP at bottom, showing a scene with color-coded bounding boxes over the action actors.

For those who don’t know the tool: Comp is an early node-based compositing application for Windows and Apple silicon, by Senior Lighting Artist Yuri Radaev. It combines CPU-based image processing with an optional network worker for AI-assisted segmentation and mask refinement.

A new compositor appears

Comp v0.1.1 is now available as a public alpha (GitHub) for Windows x64 and macOS arm64. The application has been developed as a personal project for more than a year and a half and is now being opened to the VFX community for testing and feedback. A Linux version is planned after the current builds reach a stable MVP.

A young man in a black shirt leans against a dark surface, surrounded by ambient lighting. Behind him, two monitors display the text "COMP PLANAR TRACKER" on a checkered background. The muted color palette and focused lighting create a modern, tech-savvy atmosphere.

The space occupied almost entirely by Nuke for the better part of a decade has become considerably livelier. Autograph, Silhouette, Fusion and the still very much alive Flame give artists more options than they had a few years ago. Now Comp is entering from the side. Maybe Foundry needs to up its game.

A digital interface displaying a matte tracing tool with a bright yellow graphic resembling an abstract hand shape. The background is dark, enhancing the vividness of the colors. Text labeled "MEET" and "MATTE TRACING" appears prominently above, contributing to a modern, tech-focused atmosphere.

CPU compositing and a separate AI worker

Compositing operations currently run on the CPU. GPU acceleration is limited to drawing images in the viewer while the developer evaluates possible backends for GPU compositing. An optional Comp AI Worker Service runs separately from the main application and processes queued requests locally or across a network. Its current modules provide rough image segmentation using SAM3 and mask-edge refinement using MatAnyone2. The service supports CPU, CUDA and Apple MPS targets, although transferring frames across a network may cost more time than the processing itself.

An astronaut in a white spacesuit walks across a stark checkerboard floor, with black and white squares creating a dynamic visual effect. Behind, two large white panels display the text'COMP PLANAR TRACKER,' enhancing the futuristic theme of the scene.

Separating inference from the compositor should help isolate crashes and workload requirements. It also allows artists to continue editing while a queued AI task runs. The trade-off is a more involved setup, including separately downloaded model weights and substantial memory requirements.

This is the useful part of an alpha

This is the point at which compositors can influence the development of a tool they may eventually use, unlike stuff from the Foundry. Download it, break it, report what happened and request the feature you actually need. During an early alpha, there is at least a realistic chance that useful professional feedback will become part of the application instead of disappearing into a product-management spreadsheet.

A graphical interface titled'EXPRESSIONS ENGINE' appears prominently at the top of the image, contrasting against the dark background. Below, a curved line graph illustrates changing data points, while a settings window displays technical parameters, including values and options related to animation and transformations, framed by sleek borders.

The published roadmap starts with collecting feedback and fixing bugs before a second alpha, a Linux reference build and eventually GPU rendering. The direction and development pace are explicitly open to community input.

A man in a gray t-shirt walks along a paved path cutting through a park, bordered by lush green grass and trees. Overlaid graphics in vibrant blue and red outline various points, emphasizing the movement analysis captured in this serene outdoor setting.
A man with short brown hair walks through a lush green park, flanked by neatly trimmed hedges and a soft, sunlit pathway. The scene is bright with afternoon light, and a series of blue markers and grid lines overlay the image, suggesting a digital editing process. A large rock is visible in the foreground, enhancing the natural ambiance.

Test it, but keep it out of production

The developer warns that Comp is at a very early stage and may contain critical bugs and security vulnerabilities. The Windows package is also unsigned, so the operating system may block it until the user explicitly allows it to run.

If your studio has already moved its production pipeline to this alpha and everything seems fine, something is probably wrong with your studio.

https://github.com/ukmsz/Comp-releases

https://www.reddit.com/r/vfx/comments/1uwfvqh/comp_app_alpha_release/

Bela Beier Author