Why is Blender in Financial Trouble?

[@filmstop7828]

You should scroll back up and hit the like button so this can spread to more people! Also if you have donated to the blender fund, comment - $Blender$

[@CharlesRichardsonYT]

so far you have to donate an absurd one dolor and 20 cents

[@guitarist6959]

After watching this video I felt ashamed and immediately become part of 0.3 % users ! 🤗

[@filmstop7828]

@@guitarist6959 I'm not trying to guilt trip anyone into donate, but it makes me so happy to hear that you did it gladly!

[@Nestosix]

Maybe an image and video tool, compete against Canva, i'm sure the community would make it better

[@creerpergamer3761]

I did, I‘m Bronze member since I saw this percentage from Blender Guru!

[@Tectonic2823]

Blender has made itself free for us. Now it's up to us to help Blender achieve its goals.

[@Windowz_Uzer]

I find Blender more complex than Maya in usage... Maya and Cinema 4D are slightly easier to learn. I don't know, it's my opinion.

[@SamDevAnimator]

@@Windowz_Uzer But aren't free

[@MrERJ1992]

@@SamDevAnimator Yet people still use them anyway. Your point?

[@bluebaconjake405]

@@MrERJ1992 The point was, both software are great in their own ways. Maya might be easier to learn and more polished. But it aint free and a lot of people cannot afford paying a company every month to use a software

[@JustAnAnonymous-x2s]

@@MrERJ1992 Blender being free is a huge deal for a lot of reasons. It makes 3D modeling accessible to everyone, especially students, hobbyists, and indie developers who can’t afford pricey software like Maya or Cinema 4D. Plus, no subscriptions or license headaches once you have it, it’s yours forever. And the fact that it’s free doesn’t mean it’s lacking-Blender is insanely powerful and constantly improving thanks to its open-source community. Sure, paid tools might have their advantages, but cost can be a big barrier for many people. That’s why being free matters.

[@greenraven12]

I am not even a blender user but I am going to donate. Why? Because Blender is more than a program . Its a chance for so many budding artists to do what they want to . Blender needs to grow.

[@BlobOfAwe]

Blender is unique because it's ready to set a precedent as a free, open source platform that can compete with industry standard tools. If we can help make Blender successful, it could change the face of art economy as a whole, and encourage larger players to invest more heavily into public and open source tools

[@123Jolyf1sh]

Good mind set

[@dertobbe1176]

This is actually awesome. Thank you

[@m4exii211]

♥️

[@renatobrakarz3499]

🥰😍😍😇

[@RusticKey]

As a solo developer, I couldn't afford to spend on software. I cannot exaggerate how Blender has not only helped me progress in my vision, but it single-handedly allowed me to even begin. I hope they can get the help they so deserve.

[@Chex_Mex]

Skip a coffee one day and instead spend the $5 on a blender donation. Every bit helps and if you love blender, you should be willing to donate

[@RusticKey]

@@Chex_Mex I actually brew my own coffee using cheap equipment, but I get the point lol.

[@Chex_Mex]

@@RusticKey Fair, lol. I mean it more in general, obviously if you're tight on funds and can't pay rent or have debts you need to pay back, don't worry about blender, lol. I definitely plan to donate to Blender once I put a little more time into it. Haven't used it yet, just watching tutorials as a way to get into this as a hobby

[@filmstop7828]

The goal of Blender is still to be free for 98% of people. It's awesome if you can donate, but it's okay not to.

[@Dilligff]

@@filmstop7828 That phrase is a bit misleading. It is still free to 100% of the people. That 2% isn't paying FOR it, they are contributing TO it.

[@StarContract]

Blender freed a generation of developers from proprietary 3d modelling software. Now they need our help. Send it fellas

[@mixchief]

Remember, it's not about the amount you donate. The importance is that you donate, some amount. Just do it.

[@filmstop7828]

Very true!

[@EddyMendoza-pg3jt]

I’ve been a Maya animator for 25 years since 1.0. A few months back my 16 yr old son started learning Blender so I started donating on an automatic monthly mode. I too jumped along and dedicated November to Blender from my year long Unreal Engine learning adventure and was so fascinated by it for animation that I decided to switch. I bought a handful of addons and are set to increase my donations starting in January. Btw, it was odd to see so many add on makers not sharing a single dime of their Blender add on sales. I for one decided to only buy Blender Foundation-supporting add on makers after seeing Tom’s speech a month ago. Btw, my 16yr old son landed his first job modeling shoes for a film in Blender so I will support Blender as long as I can just for making this beautifully unexpected surprise happen together with my son’s love and dedication of course. Blender rocks!!

[@filmstop7828]

That’s a really cool story! Thanks for your generous support.

[@the_grass_trainer]

i agree about the add-on creators! They turning a profit on a free software, but how many of them actually give back?

[@kraphik3d]

I have used Cinema 4D since 2006 so the old projects are not compatible with Blender. It is just another tool for 3d and maybe new artist adapt it more easily.

[@Tanukipete]

It's great to hear that a professional Maya animator is making the switch to Blender! As a pro, which add-ons have you purchased?

[@amigarulez]

This never happened. You sir are a liar. Lets take one thing out of your comment - you were fascinated by its animation. You either were poor animator in Maya, or.. Well, i can not think of one thing that Blender handles better in animation than Maya. So again - you are lying.

[@ChrisHöppner]

Blender truly is a testament to the power of free and open source software. Blender represents the freedom to create. And this means so much more than just not having to pay for using it.

[@cephotoart6466]

Great video.

[@seriousbeing7328]

Even though I'm tight on money, 5-10$ isn't going to ruin me, for how much Blender has given in my life, I cannot possibly get myself to not do it. Thank you for making this video.

[@filmstop7828]

That's awesome! Thank you

[@yoshianuragtesla8752]

As a student I'm so feeling bad that i can't donate to blender, I am here commenting on this and sharing this video with all my community groups so that you can donate thanks ❤️

[@filmstop7828]

I appreciate your support! You're certainly helping Blender by doing that!

[@Max_Garden]

Great, but honestly, i think everyone could at least, pay 5-10 dollars. But people just don't care.

[@DruidTimer]

@@Max_Garden This.

[@patrickcoan3139]

How does being a student prevent you from donating?

[@yoshianuragtesla8752]

@@patrickcoan3139 nice question, in India being a student we don't have access to all the money until and unless we start to find our own income..and I am a uni student, lately I got to know that things are completely different from a uni student from India is completely different to other countries... Here even after a Master's degree we are not sure that we can get a job...

[@SourabhMajumder-rb5fi]

as a maya and houdini user this is really heart breaking cause new youngsters will never be able to catch up trending creations bro literally we need to support blender community

[@filmstop7828]

Absolutely! That's a great insight

[@Metarig]

Why can't newcomers afford paid software like Maya, which costs $300 a year? If they can afford the hardware to run Maya, pay for internet, electricity, their living space, food, and other expenses, how does it make sense that they can't afford the software itself?

[@slavsit7600]

@@Metarig newcomers are obviously just starting out, where they arent even sure if they want 3d as their career or perhaps they do this as a hobby, so why choose the more expensive option when you can use a free alternative that has similar capabilities? not only that but blender seems to be more user-friendly with tons of internet tutorials and a much easier to read ui so it makes sense for it to attract new people

[@pepperfyves]

@@Metarig Because with a worsening economy people can't really afford many subscription fees anymore. Plus, just because they can afford some things doesn't mean that they can afford others. People need to pick and choose how they spend their money even more now than we did 5+ years ago. Are you suggesting that people just pull that kind of money out of thin air?

[@Metarig]

@@slavsit7600 I'm not talking about people who are unsure if they want to do 3D; I mean determined individuals who invest time to learn and pursue it as a career to earn money. Hobbyists can do whatever they want-they're newcomers to the hobby scene-but I'm referring to newcomers to the professional field.

[@derkamon]

maya got 5B, but still couldnt afford to fix its rotation gizmo imagine what blender could have had with that money!!

[@darviniusb]

how many billions does blender needs to implement a render manager, or a proper texture manager or a better ui or separate cycles from blender and let people use it. Because most people use blender because of cycles, if cycles would not be in blender many would not use it.

[@ALex389x]

​​@@darviniusb Cry harder kido

[@Ssecave]

@@darviniusb "most ppl use blender because of cycle" Sure kid. Sure.

[@ippotsk]

@@Ssecave hell, if Blender didn't have Eevee, I wouldn't have started using it, 'cause of my bottom-barrel laptop specs. I got so much off the ground thanks to Eevee, and only recently was I able to use Cycles at all lol.

[@Shadowyartsdirty3]

@@darviniusb Most people use Evee instead of Cycles. In fact I a prominent digital creator haven't used Cycles in months now. Just use Blender Evee and Daz Studio Nvidia Iray. Blender has great modelling tools, cool texturing tools and has really cool integration with Daz Studio so people use it regardless of the existence of cycles.

[@crabbycat8884]

Blender should start considering to go local, some country like Indonesia (who famous for charity attitude) had many Blender user but can't donate because limitation of payment methode, many of them don't speak English too, so approach locally is very important strategies

[@filmstop7828]

That's something I hadn't even thought about. Great point

[@18earendil]

However this means having translators, either volunteers or contractors/employees. For each languages in which they translate.

[@Yash-c3v]

​​@@18earendilironic comment given the video topic but they could try first translation with free tools 😅

[@anccorv]

i think the problem with limitation of payment method can be solved by helping out each other. assuming exchanging money locally isn’t the problem and it’s the international payment that’s the obstacle, one person with no paypal/credit card can transfer their donation to another with access to the proper payment methods, who then direct it to blender. but ig this is more easily said than done.

[@Ghulatz]

Do not underestimate the white elephants, the scammers.

[@the_neutral_container]

Thanks! I just donated 25 Euros. I've been using Blender for 18 Years, sometimes more, sometimes less. Always been happy and thankful it exists.

[@filmstop7828]

That's awesome! Thank you

[@dizer6586]

as a Ukrainian, i'm used to donating. I mean, most of people I know donating for military every single day. Even if it's only 1-3$, but it's daily. I can't believe that for all these years I used blender, I never even thought of making a single donation (even if i don't make money out of blender). This video is great, thank you for reminding people of importance of donations for free software

[@filmstop7828]

That's awesome! Thank you

[@StormyHotwolf88]

You had me at "Blender needs help" lolol Honestly, I only started really playing with Blender this year but I've been following them for over a decade or more. It's the tool I always wanted to learn but I had student loans to figure out how to pay off. Their story is pretty close to my heart, so I'm happy to support them.

[@filmstop7828]

That's awesome! Thank you

[@jaearnell]

Thank you for the reminder. I'll keep donating as I can. It's a fantastic tool, and it's very generous they've kept it open source for us.

[@filmstop7828]

That's awesome! Thank you

[@shotbyjkru]

Not sure why it hadn't occurred to me sooner, so I appreciate the reminder! Just became a Silver Member and have noticed a quadrupling in today's donations (probably due to this video). Awesome job, love this community.

[@junechevalier]

As a Maya and Houdini user, I am donating to Blender. My heart is in the art and medium, not brand loyalty

[@BozBundalo]

I've done 3d model a long time ago. When 3d studio for DOS came out.. I know, I know, I'm old. Then I went to code and design and do all kinds of different things but left my 3d passion behind. 25 years later, having the experience in everything else I decided to get back to 3d because it was always my dream to make a quality game. So I started learning Unreal Engine and decided to go Blender after several unsuccessful tries over the years (let's be honest, Blender wasn't ready then), I started using Blender since 3.4 and I immediately started supporting them. Paying monthly because I was blown away. I have never been more impressed with growth of a specific software in all my design/engineering career. Blender needs funding, if we all pitch in, I am 300% certain it will be the number 1 3D software in the industry. Something I never thought I would say. The speed of improvements and new features coming in a few years Blender might completely fly pass Maya, 3DS Max and everything else on the market. It would indeed be the first time in my life that open source software beats every commercial software on the market, and Blender has the potential to do it. Now wouldn't that be a wonderful thing.

[@Andrey-kh9ef]

With respect for your age. But think carefully. Which multi-billion dollar business would quietly and humbly give up its dominant position in the world, and easily part with its piece of the pie? The closer the blender gets to technical perfection, the more it becomes a real threat to those who used to think their dominance was just, the more disgruntled eyes are directed towards the blender, the bigger and stronger the opposition will be so that your (and my) thoughts of a wonderful possible future for the blender may not be destined to come true. Blender is already good enough, it has begun to penetrate the big industry, it has begun to displace those who have long occupied it (or at least begun to threaten to displace them), this means that hard times have begun for blender. Times when any meanness and lowliness is possible, from banal black PR, to bribing key programmers (so that they would delay development by imitating vigorous activity) or something even worse that you don't even want to think about...

[@amigarulez]

Blender improvements are something other programs already have, and probably have better. Blender still doing catching up game.

[@fairloke]

It's insane that such a powerful program is free. All it takes is for all the millions of users to donate $1 and this will make a difference. I am forever grateful to the creator and the developers for this incredible tool! 💛

[@ilkkarosma5528]

My thoughts exactly. If everyone just chipped in with $1, it’d make a world of difference, given the massive user base.

[@fairloke]

@ilkkarosma5528 That's awesome! I am planning to do the same.

[@beerusdestroyer4302]

All for blender all for the community all for breaking into the industry ❤❤

[@kakuwave]

I don't even use blender and I just started college again at 25, so I don't really have much money laying around, but I donated a few €. I do parametric modeling so prefer fusion, but who knows what autodesk will do in the future, might turn out like Adobe, so we always need open source alternatives. Long live Blender!

[@DoctorWhyDesigns]

I donated to Blender for the first time just from watching this video. Right now I don't use Blender for animation, but I do use it for making 3D print models.

[@filmstop7828]

That makes me so happy to hear!

[@hugoduarte4793]

Same here

[@rlab6566]

I started donating 5 usd per month because I Iove the software, the community and the developers behind it.

[@filmstop7828]

That's awesome! Thank you

[@Xyzair]

They should add donation tiers to Blender on Steam

[@TYPHONart]

So Steam would get a hefty cut each time. It's easy enough to donate on Blender page d:

[@manashieldworld]

Donated what I could as soon as I watched this. Good on you.

[@filmstop7828]

That's awesome! Thank you

[@nunyabidnis3815]

More than happy to donate to Blender. I love open source, the program is great, and I would love to see it thrive (and eventually update Texture Node Editor.) That said, it turns my stomach when I hear the future of Blender is looking to work with... Disney and AI?! Ask not for whom the bell tolls... it tolls for Blender, apparently. There is practically no conceivable way that Blender doesn't become enshittified in the process.. either by scraping users' creations with AI, for tech bros to put artists out on their asses, or some proprietary Disney tie in contract, with a loophole that strangles the open source and free use out utterly out of spite. F-ing gross to think of the long term effects of that path. You can't get a better open source program, by gearing it toward companies that _Openly disdain_ the very concept of public domains.

[@akam9919]

There is a question as to whether this is via a plugin system or not. If it is an optional plugin that is not installed by default, then I see no issue. If it is included by default, it sure as hell better be off by default...that being said, for stuff like denoising, I see no issue. For developing plugins... I dunno. Then again, I'm not a blender plugin developer.

[@Daniel-Six]

Vulkan/Eevee development is extremely important; it's the future of long-format work. I use Blender professionally and have made significant donations for over a decade. I do _not_ want to see any large corporation get influence or control over the app.

[@filmstop7828]

That's awesome! Thank you

[@drukcg]

Blender is my life, thank you for this content.

[@filmstop7828]

I'm so glad you enjoyed it!

[@Newbiesxd1]

Let's make this video popular so that we can make our favourite 3d software free forever 😢

[@friendlyfox2189]

when i make money with my games Ill donate for sure

[@chikoentertainment2909]

Boy you better donate rn because by the time you get money maybe they will no longer have it for free and now your games and never gonna get done.

[@Virtualblueart]

Thanks for the reminder, I've been exploring blender these last months and like what I'm finding, so I donated.

[@filmstop7828]

That's awesome! Thank you

[@vextormull]

All the best for Blender. And all the best to you too! Thank you for this!

[@filmstop7828]

Thank you! I'm glad you enjoyed the video.

[@sanctizz]

Bro we definitely need to donate😭🙏

[@filmstop7828]

Yes we do

[@hudson8_]

Let's go, Blender!!!! Algorithm will definitely pick this up. Your voice is actually nice when narrating and explaining, soothing. I love the visuals in the video too.

[@filmstop7828]

Thanks, glad you enjoyed it!

[@bonecircuit]

corporate sharks are circling and they know how good it is already

[@s.patterson5698]

My thoughts exactly. In fact I wouldn't put it out of the realm of possibility that some Blender Foundation insiders have been bought off by the cooperate sharks and are in cahoots to tank Blender so that independent 3D artists are left with no alternative but to scrape up resources to pay for the expensive competition. I am sure these sharks know that Blender is draining their pool of customers. I wouldn't be surprised if later we here that some cooperate entity is coming to add financial stability to Blender. What they will then do is provide some slim down product that remains free, but scuttle development, which is a legal way of killing off the competition.

[@Klayperson]

@@s.patterson5698 Nobody can come along and lock blender down and slim it down, because it's a GPL project, meaning two major things: 1) no single party owns the rights to the source, since GPL means the rights are owned by each individual contributor; and 2) even if somehow, one corporate party was able to track down every contributor and buy the rights from them, the existing GPL source code is already distributed across the world, and people will just fork the project and carry on

[@Chex_Mex]

​@@s.patterson5698Just as an FYI, open source software is fantastic for companies because now they get to benefit from software they didn't invest money into and can use it for absolutely free. While Maya 3D or Autodesk could mess them up by changing their subscriptions by 10x the price and they'd be forced to do it. There are reasons for companies to want open source software. There isn't a conspiracy to make Blender fail. It's just that no one wants to pay for something to eventually be what they need. They want to pay for the tool they need right now.

[@alextainted]

Your video inspired me to became a supporter. I just set up a monthly donation. Blender is truly something remarkable and needs to be cherished.

[@filmstop7828]

That's awesome! Thank you

[@ieye5608]

I donated when I downloaded new update, I didn't realize how low the amount of people donated to blender.

[@cwtjones]

That is a good idea. Thanks. I will donate with every new major update i install, from now on.

[@micamicamarumiru9677]

Blender is incredible! We need to support it for the future. It has given so much. Great video, thank you for bringing more awareness.

[@Thisisdcode]

As someone that can't currently donate right now I appreciate that i can at least contribute to blender even if its $0.001

[@filmstop7828]

Leaving a comment will help this video reach more people as well! Thanks for helping

[@Grez_v2]

Hell yeah ! Thank you for doing a good thing, I hope blender and this video will get more support over time

[@arcad3racer]

Guys, let's do it. Lets collectively donate and help them out right now. 1-3$ can be enough if thousands will sacrifice this amount of money :)

[@TommyLikeTom]

The best thing about blender is that even if it does goes bankrupt we will all still benefit from the software forever, because anyone can distribute it. We should all do our best to support the foundation, but Blender itself will never die, that is the beauty of open source

[@promoteskills1234]

I will donate from now on even though i use blender as hobby.

[@parnadebnath6188]

I'm in college but as soon as i graduate and get a job ... I'll donate to blender ... I believe in blender ... Hope for great things in future .

[@ArcDestiny]

Damn I had no clue they get so little money. It's such a great free program I've made many game mods with it. It may not be much, but I started donating $5 a month.

[@filmstop7828]

That's awesome! Thank you

[@caryvill003]

That's it... I'm donating... As soon as I finish studying Blender... I'm definitely donating

[@Numonique]

First year donating to blender. Worth it! Used it for years. Donate guys! :)

[@filmstop7828]

That's awesome! Thank you

[@battleaxell]

This video caused a donation surge 5x its normal day based on their website. I just donated 20 bucks because I didn’t know they were struggling. Blender should be around for everyone everywhere. Thank you for making this video

[@filmstop7828]

Thanks for donating! It makes me so happy to see the difference this video has made

[@TheUltraMinebox]

I think what matters most is the direction blender takes with that money. With corporate sponsors, blender could favor one company over another, like nvidia over amd which is bad for users, same goes for other hardware vendors and whatnot. With users donating, we could claim and suggest blender many changes as a community. I for one would love for better support with AMD as their gpus offer better value in games and more memory but have lackluster optimization for blender, and for 3d art, vram is king

[@filmstop7828]

That's a really great point, and something I haven't thought of.

[@sunnylovable1234]

Blender is a great software. We should not let it die. I am with you man

[@craigwall6071]

Giving to blender makes me happy.

[@Tetrumo]

Sounds great, on paper. But as we saw with OpenAI, money has a way of changing things. Part of me wants to see blender get adopted by the industry, but another warns me of unintended consequences.

[@coolfirebg8668]

OpenAi used email in court where it clearly stated that they never intended to release their code openly long term. The situation is not the same Blender is GPL licensed which means that every new version of Blender has to be under GPL. And even if they manage to re-release the code under a proprietary license we can fork it. Studios profit from selling movies, not software, which makes them unlikely to try and turn blender private. So the only really affected party will be AutoCAD and the likes. Big studios will probably pay their own devs to make features similar to Linux kernel contributors. That way, it is possible for them to achieve some control over development. They will also have their private plugins and forks but some of them will seap into the main version do to dificalty of maintaining them alone.

[@Tetrumo]

@@coolfirebg8668 Informative

[@wolfybuilder]

I've only just scratched the surface of Blender, but I can tell that it is an amazing piece of software, and the fact that it's free and open source is incredible. I hope they can get all the support they need, and I can't wait to see it grow to new heights!

[@dianeedwards6777]

Man, it's a damn shame that more people are not donating to blender but yet use it for free. We need to support it as it has great potential to be better and stay free. Come near the end of the month, I'll be a silver member. Thanks for the video! EDIT: a couple of minutes ago, I became a silver member.

[@EXAML]

I dont have the monry bro 😢

[@filmstop7828]

Awesome! It makes me so happy to hear you say that

[@the_grass_trainer]

we should pressure the add-on creators charging money.

[@Shadowyartsdirty3]

We should motivate the Rule 34 community that way more can donate.

[@Grenoss-z6f]

Blender has enabled the creation of so many of my favorite games and films. It's insane it doesn't get more funding for what it does.

[@Omniryu]

Honestly, the amount of money I've saved by just switching from Maya to Blender... might have to donate a few $$$$.

[@XazuyaHayato]

blender has taken my breath away so much for about a decade now....when i finally wasnt intimidated to use it, i finally figured out how to rig, so i weight painted a robots finger, rigged it, and rotated it ever so slightly, AND THE FINGER MOVED. i literally ran out of my house overwhelmed, because it felt like i just created life. literally like the scene from phenomenon with John Travolta when he first discovered his telekinesis, thats what it was like for me. For the past Decade, NOT A SINGLE SECOND has passed by without Blender SomeHow having effected my life, its incredibly intrinsic to me. & once i figured out how to model things from Scratch, literally just 1 vertex, its over. Every dream i ever had as a childhood goal, every stray thought i Accidentally had, every plan, every decision, every passion, Everything (un)imaginable; was mine to become. so what did I decide to do with this infinite power....? I decided, a promise, in my heart, of what i wanted to do, now that i could do A n y t h i n g....:"i want....to Love my friends....forever

[@filmstop7828]

That's an awesome story!

[@rmt3589]

This is awesome! Don't have money to support, but hoping I can overcome my fear of it and use it more this coming year. Commenting so the algorithm supports this video!

[@filmstop7828]

Thanks for your support!

[@theGoogol]

Saw Kaizen's video earlier and renewed my membership (upgraded to Silver).

[@filmstop7828]

Awesome! Thank you for contributing

[@GatoPaint]

done, from now on I’m donating monthly 🎉😊

[@filmstop7828]

Thank you!

[@Angkuva]

Imagine if all million users could just donate one dollar!

[@viczvapo]

Great video. Thank you.

[@filmstop7828]

I'm glad you enjoyed it!

[@LawrenceAaronLuther]

This is a difficult situation because there is AI, outsourcing, and underpaying rampant in the 3D art world which take money and jobs away from artists. To be clear, I do and hope everyone who is able to donates, but trying to make Blender's fund go up while the industry workers' collective income goes down doesn't seem feasable.

[@Luka1180]

I want them to not have AI. Instead, focus on throwing away sculpting in favor of a totally new and better system, closer in quality to zbrush's sculpting tools, and then also a better way to make and use an asset library in Grease Pencil.

[@CallMeRabbitzUSVI]

Yep, if they Add Generative Ai I will stop donating and stop updating

[@mizar3534]

Commenting to spread the message to the algorithm. We genuinely need to support companies managed like Blender!

[@MikeDaviss003]

We spend so much on addons, but won't send 5 bucks to blender

[@filmstop7828]

Very true

[@jordanmyers3489]

I've used blender for a lot of things in the past year and it's been one of the most versatile tools I've ever used, I hadn't ever thought about donating but I'm glad to have done it today.

[@Inconvenient_NPC]

It's not in financial trouble. It's been around for over twenty-five years, and it keeps getting better each time. Stop click-baiting, son. It's a pathetic way to make a living.

[@mariuswickli3206]

Well yes and no. They are not in financial trouble but they aren't really doing great either. If you have a look at the financial report you can see that they have 53 employees with a total salary of 1.6 Million. That equals in 30k per person per year which makes it a 2.5k per month per person (given that all those 53 employees work full time at Blender which probably isn't the case for every employee). The salary is over 70% of the expenses that Blender has.

[@kevinbillington9773]

I am a hobbyist filmmaker. I have Blender 4.3 on my PC. I am trying to get through the minefield that is unreal engine 5.5, vut plan on using to use Blender for creature creation. I can't model, but have experimented once on a Mixamo model and added to the textures of the model. It caught me out as I didn't realise you could have several maps on a model, so I wondered why part of it was showing as grey. Still at 60 years young I want to be able to make sure Blender is available to use for us all, I will be donating today. Thank you to Mr T, for what you have given us.

[@centuryt91]

2:00 We NEed MoNEy Arthur, We just Need mOre MoNEy

[@2spark631]

It's time to give back. I've used this for so many years. It's been the best tool in my arsenal. Let's get that 2%. Blender has given us so many creative outlets over the years. $blender$

[@filmstop7828]

Thank you!

[@TheGuillotineKing]

This is what happens when you release a product with no monetization in place you can't start a business and say I'll worry about making money later

[@peterstrong772]

I am not a blender user, but have tried it, and really should get into it, I am going to donate, as it is such a good tool for people who can't afford to create art with the other tools available.

[@randomkimed]

6:04 NOOOOOOOOOO. NO. NO. NO. STOP. NO. BAD.

[@riddlebrooke68]

Yeaoch.

[@ozi-g-be]

Do you know why AI is bad?

[@i_Have2BrainCells]

​@ozi-g-be haha, have you seen the new cocacola ad? Made with ai?

[@ozi-g-be]

@@i_Have2BrainCells yeah, but is that kind of AI (generative AI) the type of AI that's being talked about here in blender? Cus OP had a classic knee jerk reaction and I wanted to make sure he knew why people actually say "AI in art is bad" instead of treating the word "AI" like Voldemort

[@abdalnablse10]

​@@ozi-g-bePeople are starting to treat the word AI like the word NFT 💀💀💀

[@user-uk9er5vw4c]

it's in financial troubles because it's free. They are heroes in doing it, Blender is probably the best example of free software ever created

[@oakamaam]

winrar

[@1pcfred]

I think that distinction belongs to the Linux kernel. Blender isn't even in the top 10.

[@Optimumlabsllc]

Blender isn’t just helping artist do what they love. It’s helping tiny businesses and patients get on their feet.

[@Patrick-h9q1v]

If it wasn't for Blender, I'm not sure I would have gotten into 3D. Thanks to Blender, I've found a hobby that I love. Let's all do our part to make Blender even better!

[@DeafSavage]

I've been learning and using blender since my sophomore year in hs (18 years ago) and 2025 is where it feels right to give back, blender is gonna be one of them! Once I finish building my new PC, Blender is gonna get taken care of!

[@filmstop7828]

That's awesome! Thank you

[@dandelier]

Thanks for making a video about this! I was unaware of this issue and watching this was insightful :D Thanks for donating what you receive with this video to the Blender fund, I wish I could donate myself so contributing with a view and commenting makes me hopeful Blender could implement all of this in the future :]

[@filmstop7828]

You're very welcome! Every comment and view helps!

[@lucas3d676]

The problem is that it is ironically developing too fast, and it is unstable, the other thing is, most companies started on different software and it is very risky to switch to another software where you already make money on other software that you know and you would not leave your clients on ice...

[@Alkumist]

even in 21 hours looked at the fund graph on the donate page and its the highest amount recently. well done lads

[@pewweper8059]

Just a comment for algorthm boost. This video deserves attention.

[@filmstop7828]

Thank you!

[@MichaelHickman3D]

Blender is something that has changed the trajectory of my life in terms of 3D development and creation. It can't be overstated how impactful it is to the growing world of new 3D artists, game developers, and junior level creators.

[@InnerEagle]

When I have more money I will donate, because they deserve MY respect

[@1pcfred]

Yeah me too. When I have more money than I'll ever need.

[@thetommyshades5347]

Wow, I see this video right after buying a bunch of new equipment. I'm literally broke. Everything is basically budgeted out to the last cent. I don't even have Netflix right now. Hopefully that changes this year and my investments pay off because I do want to support blender. EVEE next has been a huge asset to me recently, blender basically allows me to do what I do.

[@ivancasalod2613]

Blenders philosophy is one of the best and hope that will make his way into industry standards.

[@adamward2175]

I’m going to donate monthly in the new year. I haven’t yet but blender it’s absolutely worth it. I love that it’s built by a community of users.

[@filmstop7828]

Awesome! Thank you!

[@Autumngui]

okay everyone, let's share buddy's video

[@MATIC445]

When I was in high scholl 10 years ago, Blender was a starting point for me, that eventually allowed me to become a full time 3D artist. I donated, because I want to make sure that the younger generations have also access to free software when starting their career.

[@W4ldgeist]

An important aspect in supporting blender: You are not only just supporting Blender, you are selfishly supporting your own job future. If Blender gets adopted by studios, your skill set, your private passion could be a valuable asset in the future. You won't have to succumb to super expensive tools to do that anymore. Blender could be a way in for many people. Let's make it happen people!

[@chrisjansen1943]

The solution is very simple. Blender just needs to charge greasy slimy companies like Disney, but otherwise let the model remain the same.

[@madzorojuro]

I hope blender stays there forever. I cant donate right now but i will be donating in future and ill encourage all of you to do so.

[@spliter88]

Thanks for making the video to waise awareness, I don't use blender much but it's an amazing software that has stood the test of time and it allowed me and many other creatives to enter the industry.

[@maruatajongte6293]

From a third world country its very difficult to give a decent donation but i will try my best to support and please don't let this awesome software die

[@RamdomLolola]

The fact people can't bother to give even 1$ a month to a powerful tool like Blender that can make them a living, are the same people who spend an average 100$-200$ a month on other services subscriptions, is mind blowing

[@litjellyfish]

Because people are greedy. If people can get stuff for free they will take it for free. Same people who shame Adobe for being greedy is themselves greedy. They want to make money from the 3d industry but not support the same industry

[@NavyCuda]

Blender and FreeCAD should join forces. Adding true CAD capability could really improve things. BIM and part design, assemblies, etc, really could benefit from Blender.

[@Tuelz...]

I just started using blender last year and after having success on KZbinr over the last 2 years I actually started donating to Blender. It's only right if you make money from it's software

[@dado_speedy]

Frankly, if they need money to break into the commercial world they should really address the commercial world.