Autodesk launches new brand to reflect business transformation

For the past 30 years, Autodesk has played a pivotal role in the design and creation of things. The company began as a desktop-based computer-aided design (CAD) company, and has become a leader in 3D design and engineering software.

Autodesk technology has been involved in hundreds of iconic projects like the Shanghai Tower, New York’s Freedom Tower, the redesign of the Ford Mustang, and memorable blockbuster movies, including the last 18 Academy Award winners for Best Visual Effects.

Autodesk chief marketing officer Chris Bradshaw said: “We could not think of a better place to unveil Autodesk’s new look than the premier conference about technology, entertainment and design. The new Autodesk is not just a surface change, but a reflection of how we are evolving our business. The proliferation of cloud and mobile technologies is dramatically changing the way design is done, and who is doing the designing.

To help our customers capitalise on this change, Autodesk began transforming our business a few years ago. We introduced cloud-and mobile-based software that puts powerful new design tools in our professional customer’s hands, enabling them to connect with each other and explore new ideas to improve people’s lives - by making better products, buildings, roads and bridges, and creating more engaging art, experiences and movies.”
 
These tools are also more accessible than ever to teams of all sizes and budgets. For example, Autodesk recently began offering its Autodesk Maya and Autodesk 3ds Max animation software products for 90-day rental in North America, Australia and New Zealand. This can help teams have greater control of their software usage during critical project phases. Cloud-based services such as Autodesk PLM 360, Autodesk Simulation 360, Autodesk BIM 360 Glue, and the forthcoming Autodesk Fusion 360, are also available on a term-based subscription basis. More than 15 million professional customers have accessed Autodesk cloud products since their introduction in September 2011.

Autodesk has invested in new markets like personal fabrication and digital art, attracting millions of new customers every month to use Autodesk design apps and products. Today, more than 100 million designers, engineers, architects, creative artists, students and hobbyists use Autodesk software, cloud services and mobile apps. They are using Autodesk technology to unleash their creativity and imagine, design and create whatever they want.

“The visual change is the most significant branding update in Autodesk’s 30-year history, but since 1982, we’ve made subtle changes to things like color and imagery. We gradually moved from the original calipers icon – a tool used to measure the distance between two opposite sides of an object – to the use of the Autodesk name. Our new visual identity includes a logomark with the Autodesk name for the first time in more than a decade.

A talented team of Autodesk designers created the new branding and found their inspiration in origami. The style beautifully shows the convergence of art and science, form and function, aptly representing the Autodesk software portfolio,” Bradshaw added.