<\/p>\n Many people like me have spent the last few years trying to work out whether AI has a place within the creative processes of art creation, but this deliberation can\u2019t go on forever. At some point, these philosophical questions have to land in practical living, and I think 2026 will see a major shift in that movement. (Read my 3D art trends for 2026<\/a>.)<\/p>\n You may like<\/p>\n I expect we\u2019ll see an increase in hybrid workflows where the 3D artist maintains creative control over the project while AI handles more of the heavy lifting. I expect this to take hold in areas of concept development, model generation, and rendering upscaling.<\/p>\n \n (Image credit: AI-generated \/ posted by Mike Verdu on LinkedIn)1. Concept development<\/p>\n I believe 3D artists will begin to more fully embrace generative AI tools like Midjourney and DALL-E to create concept sketches and mood boards. This will dramatically speed up the process of fine-tuning the creative brief and make sure the artist is on the same page as the client.<\/p>\n This will, of course, require 3D artists to become adept in prompt writing, something that many won\u2019t yet be familiar with. Forward-thinking 3D artists will increasingly share their workflows and knowledge in this area, which will help less experienced artists to try it for themselves.<\/p>\n \n (Image credit: MidJourney)2. Model generation<\/p>\n Once the concept has been developed and refined, 3D artists will then use AI tools such as Meshy<\/a> and Hyper 3D<\/a> to generate props, environment elements, and characters. These will then be adapted within traditional software such as Blender<\/a>, Maya, and 3ds Max.<\/p>\n Again, this will not be a familiar workflow to many, but those who are able to do this efficiently and successfully will set themselves apart from the rest. I don\u2019t envisage it being used on every project, but rather, 3D artists will need to determine for themselves whether they should do so on a case-by-case basis.<\/p>\n We will also see an increase in automated texturing as well as AI-driven retopology and UV mapping. As a result, I expect to see an increase in specialist AI-skilled artists. Are you ready for some upskilling?<\/p>\n \n (Image credit: Nfinite)3. Rendering upscaling<\/p>\n One of the most time-consuming parts of any 3D project is creating the rendered images and videos. The fine balance of quality versus time taken is something that most 3D artists will have a love-hate relationship with. Software has gone a long way to reducing rendering times, and render farms can obviously help, at a cost, but I think AI will disrupt the process more significantly.<\/p>\n I expect we\u2019ll see more people turning to AI upscalers developed by the likes of Topaz<\/a> and Adobe<\/a>. It\u2019ll become increasingly possible for 3D artists to generate lower-resolution and lower-quality images, knowing that AI upscaling can then take over and generate the finished items. This will be a game-changer for delivering complex projects quickly.<\/p>\n![\"An](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/guh5r8BnVgoHiEMEDwyW6j.jpg\")
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