A developer clones Adobe and now Microsoft Office with free, open-source AI-built apps

Mashable reports that a software developer has released free, open-source versions of the Microsoft Office apps. He had already done the same with Adobe's. The article, by Matt Binder, was published on October 12, 2026. It asks whether "vibecoded" apps, meaning apps built with the help of AI models, can displace legacy paid software, or whether, on the contrary, they will end up proving that software is a superior product.

The project's author is a Reddit user, u/ai_art_is_art. Tom's Hardware identified him as a software engineer named Brandon Thomas. In early October he shared a project rebuilding the entire Adobe Creative Suite under the ArtCraft brand. The key difference from Adobe is that his tools are free, while Adobe charges. According to the article, Thomas recreated the apps with the help of AI and used Rust as the programming language.

The creative suite's apps are PhotoCraft, FilmCraft, DesignCraft, EffectCraft, PdfCraft, VectorCraft and LightCraft. Each one duplicates one of Adobe's signature apps, including Premiere, Photoshop and After Effects. Thomas released them all as free, open-source tools.

Now the developer has gone after Microsoft Office. He has launched WordCraft, DeckCraft and GridCraft, his versions of Word, PowerPoint and Excel. He has also added other creative duplicates such as SoundCraft, DesignCraft and CADCraft.

The project has stirred controversy on Reddit and elsewhere online over its use of AI-generated code. Thomas has clarified that he is a developer who knows how to code. Even so, doubts about the cybersecurity and ethics of AI-generated code have led some subreddits to remove posts about his apps. There is also concern that he alone now oversees such a broad set of apps, although the community is invited to contribute to the open-source project.

Another point of friction is his openly pro-AI stance. He has released the apps under the ArtCraft brand, which the article describes as a for-profit suite of tools for generating AI art. His Reddit username, "AI art is art," reflects that position.

His supporters see the project as an act of protest against companies like Adobe and against what they consider unscrupulous subscription tactics, such as making plans hard to cancel.

The article acknowledges that it is unclear whether these apps will last in the long run. That hasn't stopped some social media users from speculating that the era of legacy paid software is over. Mashable points to a similar trend in the gaming world, where AI-assisted jailbreaks and decompiled games are already easy to find.

Editor's note: the downloaded text includes only the Mashable article, with no technical analysis or data on the apps' usage, downloads or quality. This summary is therefore limited to what the article reports and does not assess whether the apps measure up to Adobe or Office.