Autodesk has released Maya 2025.2, the latest version of its 3D software for visual effects, animation, and game development, as well as Maya Creative 2025.2, a streamlined version of the software.
The updates include a new ML-based deformer for fast, interactive approximations of complex character rigs. This tool allows users to take characters with intricate, slow-processing rigs and train the deformer to accurately represent the deformations it generates on the character's mesh. Animators can then work more interactively with the machine learning-generated approximation before reverting to the original during rendering.

The ML Deformer extracts information from an animation sequence that provides a range of movement for the target geometry, which can include motion capture data, keyframe animation, or random movements generated by the built-in pose generator. Multiple different models can be trained and switched between, with a training results window helping to assess the performance of the trained AI models. While ML Deformer is the only new feature listed in the release notes, Maya 2025.2 also includes updates for several accompanying plugins.

The LookdevX material creation and styling toolkit for Maya 1.5.0 includes a new Ramp node (shown above) and enhanced Arnold material display in the viewport. The Arnold integration plugin has also been updated, with Arnold for Maya 5.4.2.1 now supporting new features from Arnold 7.3.2. The USD for Maya 0.29, the latest version of the USD workflow plugin for Maya, now supports importing USD blendshape formats. Additionally, there have been several workflow improvements, including the ability to copy and paste key values in USD within Maya's Outliner and new options for exporting in USD format.

Autodesk has also released Maya Creative 2025.2, a corresponding update for the streamlined version of Maya, aimed at smaller studios and available for an additional fee. It includes the same new features, including the ML Deformer.

Maya is available for Windows 10 and above, RHEL and RockyLinux 8.7/9.3, and macOS 12.0 and above. The software is available only via subscription, with costs of $235 per month or $1875 per year. In many countries, artists earning less than $100,000 per year and working on projects with budgets under $100,000 are eligible for the Maya Indie subscription, priced at $305 per year. Maya Creative is available on a pay-as-you-go basis, starting at $3 per day, with a minimum annual cost of $300.