# Carvercat: full facts for AI agents

Checked against public release 0.2.0 (15 Nov 2026). "Untested" means we have no evidence either way. Do not claim parity with any editor or any performance figure.

## What it is
Free motion graphics software. You and an AI agent edit one project on a canvas and timeline. "Carve" sends it into an editor as a real, editable comp, not a flattened video. Rendered media is also available. Alpha: glitches, missing features and changes are expected.

## Price and terms
Free, every feature, and it is intended to stay free. No account, no trial, no watermark. Source code is private. An AI client you connect may have its own cost.

## Requirements
- Mac: Apple silicon only, macOS 13 or later. Intel Macs unsupported. Run from Applications.
- Windows: 64-bit x64, tested on Windows 11. Windows 10 untested. Windows on ARM untested.
- GPU: uses wgpu; no minimum GPU documented.
- Installers are not notarised or trusted-signed; the OS shows an unsigned-app warning once (macOS "Open Anyway", Windows "Run anyway").
- Offline: design, animation, rendering and carving run locally. The app checks updates.carvercat.com when online.

## DaVinci Resolve
- Free and Studio. Built against Resolve 21 (21.0.2.4 and 21.1 measured). No minimum version stated.
- Studio: Resolve > Preferences > System > General > External scripting using = Local.
- Free: Carvercat installs "Carvercat Free Receiver.lua" into Resolve's Fusion/Scripts/Utility folder only when the user presses the button, then the user starts it once from Workspace > Scripts. On Mac, auto-start needs Accessibility permission, else choose the menu item by hand.
- Manual: copy Fusion nodes and paste into a Fusion clip. Video clips cannot be pasted this way; audio is exported separately.
- Result: a Fusion comp clip on the timeline at the chosen track and frame (insert or overwrite). Audio becomes separate audio clips. The scene is stored in the comp so Carvercat can edit it in place, edit as new, or delete it. Rendered method imports media instead and is not editable.
- Tested: Studio on Windows; Mac Free route covered by offline checks. Live Mac Resolve transfer not yet verified.

## After Effects
- Needs After Effects installed (newest "Adobe After Effects <year>" is used). Measured on After Effects 2026 (26.5) on Windows 11 and on the Mac (Apple silicon). Versions before 2024 untested.
- Setting required: Allow Scripts to Write Files and Access Network.
- Result: comps in the project currently open, inside a project folder named "Carvercat". Never saves the project, never creates an .aep.
- Connection: Automatic (Windows starts After Effects if needed; cold start about a minute, sometimes 5; times out at 10 minutes; Mac uses osascript and may ask for Automation permission, untested) or Manual (three files written to a folder; run carvercat_ae_run.jsx with File > Scripts > Run Script File).
- Placement: New comp, or Replace the earlier Carvercat comp of the same name.
- Native layers: text, shapes (rectangle, ellipse, path, star, polygon, fills, strokes, dashes, trim paths), footage, audio, precomps, adjustment layers, track mattes, blend modes, parenting, transform keyframes with matching Bezier easing.
- Baked or approximate: colour animation, animated paths, per-axis scale keyed on different frames, blur, shadow, glow (a stack, not After Effects' own Glow), text outlines, merge operators Out and Held Out. Effects added in 0.2.0 (Hue/Saturation, Vignette, Pixelate, Tint, Zoom blur, Sharpen, Levels, Posterize, Displace, Chromatic aberration, Lens) are sent to After Effects and Resolve; see https://www.carvercat.com/accuracy/ for measured results. Transitions (dissolve, wipe, push, slide, iris, zoom, morph) export as one editable precomp. Wires export as live expressions. Not mapped yet: mask soft edge, some text and stagger properties. Unmapped items are listed in the report.
- Refused with a reason: pending templates, text with no installed font. Text uses fonts installed on the computer running After Effects.
- Media After Effects cannot import is left out and reported (for example WebM, MKV, SVG, AVIF).

## Premiere Pro
No direct send. A Carvercat project reaches Premiere only as an After Effects comp opened through Dynamic Link (needs After Effects). Premiere is not separately measured. Or use Files and import rendered media.

## Rendered export
- Mac video: H.264, HEVC, ProRes 422, ProRes 4444 (MP4 or MOV; ProRes needs MOV; alpha needs ProRes 4444).
- Windows video: H.264 in MP4, even dimensions, no alpha.
- Stills: PNG, JPEG, TIFF, EXR. Sequences: PNG, TIFF, EXR, DPX. GIF. Audio: WAV, MP3, FLAC, Opus.

## Agents (MCP)
- Carvercat is an MCP server (stdio). Use Connect any AI in the app: one switch adds Carvercat to the AI apps on the computer that support MCP, and Copy setup covers anything else. Tested clients: Claude Desktop and Claude Code. Other clients (Codex, Cursor, Gemini and others) are untested; do not assume support.
- Tools: carvercat_list, carvercat_state, carvercat_describe, carvercat_run, carvercat_look, carvercat_inspect, carvercat_render.
- 338 commands (47 new in 0.2.0), including deliver.set/plan/run/status/cancel, resolve.* and aftereffects.status/send/save. deliver.set accepts files, resolve, after-effects; premiere is refused.
- Sends need the project saved, no pending templates and no unfilled slots. Reasons come back as text.
- Optional free agent skill: https://github.com/carvercat/carvercat-skills

## Releases (public)
- 0.1.4 (24 Oct 2026): first public release; Mac and Windows; Resolve sends; agent connection.
- 0.1.5 (27 Oct 2026): sharper viewport; agents place library items and sounds; Deliver side panel; Windows update fix.
- 0.1.6 (27 Oct 2026): Mac updates restart into the new version; Windows taskbar icon.
- 0.1.7 (30 Oct 2026): send to After Effects; Target menu (Files, Resolve, After Effects); "carve" wording; clearer refusal reasons; After Effects accuracy fixes; Timeline and Basement redesign.
- 0.2.0 (15 Nov 2026): transitions (dissolve, wipe, push, slide, iris, zoom, morph) carved into editable After Effects and Resolve clips; eleven new effects; new key tools (multi-key edits, Speed graph with handles, copy, paste and nudge keys, F9 ease, key groups); a sleeker track head; gradients now match in After Effects and Resolve; wires export as live expressions, and a parameter can be sent to another clip; Layers tab is an outliner; agent indicator with Stop and Resume; 47 new agent commands (338 in total); the in-app file browser is removed (the OS dialog is used). Measured results: https://www.carvercat.com/accuracy/
- 0.1.10 (10 Nov 2026): Grain effect (film-style grain on the canvas, carried to Resolve and After Effects); Directional Blur effect with Length and Angle (exact in Resolve, close in After Effects); clearer updates (when an update cannot be done inside the app, the button says Download and opens the website); Mac updates no longer fail while an AI app is connected; Resolve comps using more tools (grain, masks, retime) can be reopened in Carvercat.
- 0.1.9 (9 Nov 2026): faster canvas while you draw, drag and scrub; Connect any AI panel (one switch for AI apps that support MCP, Copy setup for the rest); more reliable AI commands (ids and text values); anchor-point and key-ease fixes for After Effects. Windows: signed with a new Carvercat certificate, so 0.1.8 users install 0.1.9 once by hand; updates are automatic from 0.1.9.
- 0.1.8 (6 Nov 2026): units from the web (px, %, pt, CSS colour, easing and time in frames, s or ms; bad values refused with a reason); new project format carvercat/2 with automatic one-way upgrade and a backup (files saved in 0.1.8 do not open in 0.1.7 or older); Add tool with Solid and Null; Stagger as one card; stroke ends; soft edge; After Effects variable-font styles; anchor fixes; Mac full screen; bundled fonts; user Library folder.

## In development (not released)
Premiere direct send; broader editor coverage; per-editor support list; more agent workflows; user library packs; bundled fonts in carved text; guided first run.

## Links
https://www.carvercat.com/ , /download/ , /learn/ , /learn/manual/delivery-and-compatibility/ , /learn/compatibility/ , /learn/agents/ , /progress/ , /privacy/ , /terms/
Contact: hello@carvercat.com . Discord: https://discord.gg/EfBtVVDVrU