On August 7th, 2025, Adobe announced that Adobe Aero will be permanently shut down on November 6th, 2025, with full decommissioning of files and user data by December 16th. This decision, explained in a community post by Adobe employee Jeremie Noguer, means that Aero scenes (.real files) will stop working, and all Aero user data will be removed from servers. For creators and businesses who’ve invested years into Aero, this feels like the rug being pulled out from under them.
But here’s the good news: this is not the end of your AR projects. In fact, it’s an opportunity to give them a stronger, more flexible home in tools built for the long term.
That’s where Zapworks Designer and Mattercraft come in.
At Zappar, we’ve been building web-based augmented, virtual and mixed reality tools for over a decade. With Zapworks Designer (our intuitive, no-code AR builder) and Mattercraft (our advanced, web-native immersive 3D development environment), you have two powerful options to continue your AR development and even expand on what you started in Aero.
Both tools keep accessibility at the forefront: your experiences run straight in the browser across smartphones, desktops and headsets, instantly accessible via QR code or link.
Learn how to move your projects from Adobe Aero by watching the tutorial below.
If you're coming to Zapworks Designer or Mattercraft cold, I'd suggest starting your journey by watching the tutorial above, which covers:
.reel file to .zip to access all assets.
Zapworks Designer is our no-code, drag-and-drop AR tool designed for speed and simplicity. If you're a lifelong Aero user, you should feel right at home in Designer with its intuitive UI, templates, easy interactivity and rich media support. Like Aero, it empowers creators without requiring deep coding knowledge; however, Designer goes further with:
The good news: your Aero assets aren’t locked away. You can export them and rebuild your project in Designer:
In Aero, go to File → Export → Real.
Rename the .real file to .zip and unzip it to access your assets.
In Designer, create a new project (start with the World Tracking template).
Upload your 3D assets into Designer’s library.
Drag and drop them into the scene, then reposition and animate.
Add any text, buttons, or videos you need.
Preview instantly, then publish with a click.
It feels familiar to Aero, but you’re now building on a platform designed for longevity.
If you want to jump right in: Start building with Designing using our 14-day free trial. Access step-by-step tutorials and templates to speed up your first rebuild.
For creators who want to push their immersive 3D experiences further, Mattercraft gives you the power to build interactive, physics-driven, spatially complex AR, VR or mixed reality scenes—still all web-native.
Key features include:
The process is similar to Designer, but Mattercraft gives you more freedom to expand:
Export your Aero .real file → rename to .zip → unzip assets.
Open Mattercraft and start a project using the World Tracking 3D model template.
Import your assets into the project hierarchy.
Use the animation panel to recreate Aero animations—or extend them further.
Add behaviors (e.g., looping animations, on-click interactions).
Enhance with particles, physics, or even VPS-based location tracking.
Live preview in AR, then publish instantly.
👉 If you could build it in Aero, you can build it (and more) in Mattercraft.
Get started with Mattercraft using our 14-day free trial, or if you're looking to take the product for a spin without creating an account, Mattercraft has loads of great tutorials as well as a templates library where you can test projects in Sandbox mode without having to create an account.
The shutdown of Adobe Aero is a reminder that creative tools don’t always last forever. But your creativity does and it deserves a platform that will evolve with you. At Zappar, we’re committed to supporting the AR community with tools that are accessible, powerful, and built for the long term.
Whether you’re just starting with Designer or ready to dive into Mattercraft, we’re here to make sure your AR journey continues stronger than ever.
We can't wait to see what you create! 😁