Adobe to acquire Topaz Labs and add its features to Photoshop

Saturday 27 June 2026, 16:32 by Elja Trum | 1,340 views | 2 comments

This article was translated from Dutch with the help of AI. Read the original.

Adobe has announced plans to acquire Topaz Labs. Topaz is best known for software that uses artificial intelligence to sharpen, enlarge and denoise photos and videos.

Adobe plans to integrate Topaz Labs' technology into Adobe Firefly and the programmes within Creative Cloud, among others. It seems likely that we will eventually see these techniques in programmes such as Photoshop and Lightroom.

Better image quality with AI

Topaz Labs has been developing software for improving photos and videos for more than twenty years. The current programmes make extensive use of AI models.

For example, Topaz Photo can reduce noise, correct blur and enlarge small images. Topaz Gigapixel focuses specifically on enlarging images, while Topaz Video is used for upscaling, stabilising and restoring video footage, among other things.

The software analyses the image and tries to reconstruct missing details in a believable way. This can be useful, for example, with photos taken at a high ISO setting, heavily cropped images or old photos with a low resolution.

Adobe already has similar techniques of its own, of course. Examples include AI noise reduction and Super Resolution in Lightroom and Camera Raw. With Topaz's knowledge and models, Adobe will probably be able to improve these capabilities further.

Integration into Creative Cloud

Adobe has not yet announced exactly which features will end up in which programmes. The company does mention Adobe Firefly, Firefly Services and the Creative Cloud programmes as destinations for Topaz's technology.

For photographers, Photoshop and Lightroom are the most obvious programmes. Topaz already offers plug-ins that allow the software to be used from Photoshop and Lightroom.

By integrating the technology directly into Adobe's programmes, these improvements may eventually be carried out without first sending a photo to a separate programme or an external plug-in.

The acquisition could also be interesting for video makers. Topaz has technologies for stabilising footage, increasing the frame rate, removing noise and upscaling video material. These features could eventually find a place in Premiere Pro or other Adobe video programmes.

Running AI locally

Another interesting part of the acquisition is Neurostream. This Topaz technology allows relatively large AI models to run locally on a computer.

Many generative AI features currently work through the cloud. A photo or video first has to be sent to a server to be processed there. Local processing can be faster and means that files do not have to leave the computer.

According to Adobe, Topaz's technology could help make advanced AI features available more quickly and cheaply on ordinary computers.

Topaz will remain available independently for now

Adobe says that Topaz Labs' programmes will remain available independently through the Topaz website once the acquisition has been completed. Existing customers should also continue to receive support.

Topaz chief executive Eric Yang will continue to lead the Topaz team after the acquisition.

It is not yet known what will happen to the separate programmes, plug-ins and subscriptions in the longer term. In previous acquisitions, technologies were often eventually integrated into existing Adobe programmes. It is therefore quite possible that more and more Topaz features will become a direct part of Creative Cloud.

Acquisition not yet final

Adobe and Topaz Labs have signed a definitive agreement, but the acquisition still needs to be approved by the regulators. The companies expect the transaction to be completed in the second half of 2026.

The amount Adobe is paying for Topaz Labs has not been disclosed.

For photographers with a Creative Cloud subscription, the acquisition could ultimately have positive results. Good noise reduction, sharpening and enlargement of photos could become better integrated into the existing workflow.

For users who use Topaz as an independent alternative to Adobe, it remains a case of waiting to see how long the programmes will actually remain available separately and under what conditions.

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