Shap-E for Unity is now free. It comes with an installation guide which requires a manual cloud setup. Please read the documentation.

ABOUT

Shap-E, a conditional generative model for 3D assets, is developed by OpenAI. "Shap-E-Text to 3D" for Unity makes this technology easily accessible to the Unity community.

Note: All the models you see in the display images are AI generated.

LINKS

Shap-E works in realtime, both in, Edit Mode or Play Mode inside of the Unity Editor. This asset has a one-click, beginner friendly GUI and does not require any coding to use.

Please check out the forum page for the latest developments and discussion related to this asset. We are researching and adding more functionality continuously. Your support is appreciated.

FEATURES

🪑 Text to Mesh AI Model: The main function of the asset is to generate 3D assets from texts. Simply enter the text to be converted into a 3D asset and click on generate.

⚡ Fast inferences: Models typically take 8-10 seconds* to generate a model. *It may take lesser or more amount of time to generate the model depending on number of refinement steps, traffic on the server, CFG scale and model format.

📂 Formats: Generated models are offered in FBX, BLEND and GLB ensuring the developer has access to all avenues - desktop, web, mobile, VR and other platforms. Models exported to blend can be further changed into types like OBJ.

🔨 Mesh Decimation: Reduce the complexity of generated 3D models while maintaining their overall shape and structure. The asset can help remove unnecessary vertices, edges, and faces, optimizing the model's performance and resource efficiency. The mesh generated is clean quads so retopolgizing is possible in an external 3D application.

🧱 Mesh AutoLOD: The Automatic Level of Detail (AutoLOD) feature enhances efficiency by automatically generating multiple versions of the same model at varying levels of detail. This ensures that the generated 3D assets are optimized for different viewing distances and platform capabilities.

🧹 Mesh Painting: Add vibrant colors to your 3D models using the intuitive Model Painting feature. Easily apply colors to individual vertices, edges, or faces, giving your models a distinct and appealing visual aesthetic. Works by painting the mesh in the scene view.

🎨 Vertex Colors: In contrast to traditional UV mapping and texturing, the generated 3D models come with vertex colors. The color information is directly associated with each vertex, eliminating the need for complex texture mapping. The result is a more lightweight model that retains its aesthetic appeal without relying on external image textures.

EDITOR

Keeping it all in the editor: Keeping all assets in one workspace inside the Editor and having to switch to fewer services can have several benefits, such as:

- Improved Efficiency: When all assets are located in one workspace, it becomes easier to access and manage them. Users do not have to spend time switching between different services or applications, which can be time-consuming and lead to a loss of productivity.

- Streamlined Workflow: Having all assets in one workspace can help create a more streamlined workflow. This is because users can easily move between different assets, such as code files, images, and documents, without having to navigate between different services. This can help to speed up the development process and make it more efficient.

- Reduced Complexity: Using fewer services can help to reduce the complexity of the development process.

DEPENDENCIES

This tool requires the Editor Coroutines package from the package manager and an active internet connection.

LIMITATIONS

As this tool is still under development by OpenAI, a few limitations exist:

The primary limitation relates to the quality of models and how they appear. Generations sometimes deviate from the intended prompt. Given the technology's relative novelty, and with the backing of OpenAI, improvements in raw quality are expected. The generated mesh has quads and retopologizing can be done in an external 3D application.
The asset generated can have a high poly count. This may be desirable for retopolgizing but not so much for direct use. A model can have a polycount of as low as an optimized 5,000 tris all the way up to 150,000 tris.
Instead of textures and UV mapping, the object uses vertex colors. In some cases, this can enhance performance, but you will not reduce polygons and have the same visual quality of textures held in place by UV maps. By default, vertex colors are not displayed on the model in any of the SRPs and Built-in Unity pipeline, but they can be easily displayed and used using the built-in particle shader, and the vertex Color node in HDRP.
Substantial computational resources are required to operate and set up the service. Consequently, there may be periods of downtime. We will maintain backup servers to promptly address any issues that may arise and address this beforehand on the forums.

LICENSING

You will have the copyright of all the models you generate, thereby granting you full ownership of models you create with this asset. You can use the models for all commercial activities. For more details, please read the updated documentation attached in the links section of the description.

Shap-E - Text-to-3D