yelzkizi Epic Games Acquires Meshcapade: What the Deal Means for Fortnite, Unreal Engine, and MetaHuman

Epic Games acquires Meshcapade: what we know so far

Epic Games, developer of Fortnite and the Unreal Engine, announced in mid-February 2026 that it has purchased the German AI startup Meshcapade.  The deal – reportedly for an undisclosed sum – was confirmed by Epic’s Fortnite studio and press reports .  Meshcapade will join Epic’s AI Research group (based in Tübingen’s “Cyber Valley”) and help advance Epic’s digital human technology.  According to MediaPost, Epic plans to integrate Meshcapade’s “AI-powered 3D video-rendering technology” into creative tools for Fortnite, Unreal Engine, gaming, film, and virtual production .  Epic’s CTO Kim Libreri said the acquisition will provide creators with “new specialized tools for developing digital humans” across entertainment .

Meshcapade acquisition date and announcement timeline

Epic’s takeover of Meshcapade was officially announced in mid-February 2026.  The first media reports appeared on February 18, 2026, with Epic’s own Newsroom account tweeting the news .  Over the following days, outlets like The Verge, GameSpot, and German press (Heise, Max Planck Society) covered the story.  For example, GameSpot published its story on Feb 18, and Max Planck released a press statement on the same date .  Epic noted that Meshcapade’s team will physically relocate to Epic’s new Tübingen office.  In sum, the deal was made public by Epic in February 2026, with follow-up commentary from both companies soon after .

yelzkizi Epic Games Acquires Meshcapade: What the Deal Means for Fortnite, Unreal Engine, and MetaHuman
yelzkizi Epic Games Acquires Meshcapade: What the Deal Means for Fortnite, Unreal Engine, and MetaHuman

Epic Games Meshcapade acquisition price: how much did it cost

Neither Epic nor Meshcapade has publicly disclosed the purchase price.  All reports indicate the terms are undisclosed.  GameSpot simply notes the acquisition “for an undisclosed sum” , and German tech press confirmed the companies remain silent about the price .  No leaked figure has emerged, so the exact cost remains private.

Why Epic Games bought Meshcapade for digital humans

Epic’s interest lies in Meshcapade’s advanced AI motion-capture technology, which aligns with Epic’s push into hyper-realistic human characters (MetaHumans) and animation.  Meshcapade’s AI can turn ordinary video into highly accurate 3D body motion and shape data, a capability that complements Epic’s MetaHuman framework .  Epic executives emphasized that Meshcapade’s work will bolster their digital-human toolset: CTO Kim Libreri said the combined teams will “give creators… powerful specialized tools for the generation of digital humans” across gaming, film, and virtual production .  Epic’s VP of Digital Humans, Vladimir Mastilović, added that Meshcapade’s long-term research strategy “complements” Epic’s existing goals and ideas .  In short, Epic bought Meshcapade to accelerate development of realistic character animation and AI-driven human modeling for its platforms.

What is Meshcapade and what does it do

Meshcapade is a Tübingen, Germany-based AI startup (founded 2018 as a Max Planck Institute spin-off ) that develops markerless motion-capture and digital-human tools.  In practice, Meshcapade provides AI-powered software that can “transform video footage…into precise, high-fidelity 3D data ready for immediate integration” into games, films, ads and more . 

Their technology is built on the SMPL body model (a realistic 3D human template trained on thousands of scans ).  From a normal video – even a handheld phone camera – Meshcapade’s algorithms estimate body shape, posture, and motion, producing detailed skeletal animation and shape parameters.  In short, Meshcapade takes ordinary video of people moving and outputs a rigged 3D character animation (with body shape and motion).  This lets creators quickly capture real human movements without bulky sensors or suits .

yelzkizi Epic Games Acquires Meshcapade: What the Deal Means for Fortnite, Unreal Engine, and MetaHuman
yelzkizi Epic Games Acquires Meshcapade: What the Deal Means for Fortnite, Unreal Engine, and MetaHuman

Meshcapade markerless motion capture from video explained

Traditional motion capture uses multiple cameras and body suits with markers to track an actor’s movement – a costly setup only large studios can afford .  Meshcapade’s method is markerless: it applies computer vision and machine learning to standard video.  Their system analyzes each video frame, fitting the SMPL model to the actor’s pose and body shape over time.  In effect, it “captures” 3D motion from plain footage. 

As one report notes, Meshcapade’s model “allows 3D human motion to be ‘captured’ not only through expensive traditional motion-capture technology, but also directly from standard videos” .  This AI-driven process reconstructs smooth, full-body animations from any one-camera video, making motion capture far more accessible.  For example, Meshcapade’s MoCapade platform can take a single handheld video and output multi-person 3D motion, including even the camera path .  In short, Meshcapade turns video into precise 3D motion data via smart AI, bypassing the need for suits or manual keyframing.

SMPL body model explained and why it matters

A key ingredient of Meshcapade’s tech is the SMPL (Skinned Multi-Person Linear) body model, developed by the Max Planck Institute.  SMPL is a parameterized 3D human mesh: it can represent any person’s body shape (height, build, proportions) and pose (skeletal pose with joint rotations) using a set of numerical parameters.  Essentially, SMPL is a “digital puppet” trained on thousands of body scans to generate realistic human forms in any pose.  Meshcapade uses SMPL to map video input onto this model, yielding animatable characters. 

Importantly, SMPL has become the de facto standard for 3D human representation in both research and industry .  Because it is widely used, tools and engines (like Unreal) already support SMPL rigs.  In practical terms, by using SMPL Meshcapade ensures compatibility with many pipelines.  (Note: Epic did not buy SMPL itself – Max Planck Innovation will continue licensing the SMPL technology , so SMPL remains available to all existing and new customers.)  In summary, SMPL is the underlying “body template” that Meshcapade animates, and its industry adoption makes Meshcapade’s data easy to integrate.

yelzkizi Epic Games Acquires Meshcapade: What the Deal Means for Fortnite, Unreal Engine, and MetaHuman
yelzkizi Epic Games Acquires Meshcapade: What the Deal Means for Fortnite, Unreal Engine, and MetaHuman

How Meshcapade turns standard video into 3D body motion data

Meshcapade’s pipeline processes any ordinary video clip (even from a smartphone) to estimate 3D human motion.  Behind the scenes, the software first detects the people in the frame and fits a parametric model (SMPL) to their body in each frame.  It uses advanced machine learning and graphics to infer the 3D pose and shape sequence.  In practice, the user uploads a video to Meshcapade’s platform (MoCapade), and the AI outputs a 3D skeleton, camera trajectory, and even body shape parameters – all extracted from that single video .  The system can now handle complex cases like multiple people and moving cameras . 

For example, Meshcapade’s recent MoCapade 3.0 can capture up to four people, include fine hand motion, and export the camera path along with body motion .  The result is a ready-to-use 3D animation or pose data that can be exported to standard formats (FBX, GLB, etc.) or even in SMPL format . In essence, the platform automates what would otherwise require dozens of mocap cameras and manual cleanup, by extracting full-body motion directly from video.

Full-body and finger tracking with Meshcapade motion capture

Meshcapade’s technology captures full-body motion including limbs and fingers.  The company highlights that its markerless system works with “full body and fingers” from a single camera .  The latest MoCapade releases have explicitly added detailed hand and finger articulation.  For instance, MoCapade 3.0 introduced “more detailed 3D motion with better hand and foot positioning,” improving accuracy of gestures and finger poses . 

In practice, this means the AI will track your arms, legs, and even the pose of your hands and fingers in the output.  While traditional mocap suits can capture finger movement via gloves, Meshcapade does so from video alone. This enables users to animate hand gestures and interactions without extra hardware.  (On its website, Meshcapade promises “Full Body and Fingers – capture it all” in one camera capture .)

yelzkizi Epic Games Acquires Meshcapade: What the Deal Means for Fortnite, Unreal Engine, and MetaHuman
yelzkizi Epic Games Acquires Meshcapade: What the Deal Means for Fortnite, Unreal Engine, and MetaHuman

Meshcapade vs traditional motion capture suits and mocap studios

Compared to a conventional mocap studio (with dozens of cameras, motion-capture suits, green screens, and specialized staff), Meshcapade’s approach is far simpler.  Traditional mocap is expensive and complex: it requires custom hardware (suit sensors or optical markers), studio rental, and expert setup .  Meshcapade’s markerless method eliminates most of that cost – all you need is a video camera.  By using AI to interpret video, it provides a third alternative to expensive studios or hand animation . 

In terms of accuracy, high-end studios can still capture minute detail (especially for fingers, face) that may outpace simple video. But for many applications, Meshcapade’s output quality is very high.  As Max Planck notes, this method enables “high-quality moving avatars” that traditionally only appeared in big-budget films, but now “with AI using just video input” .  In summary, Meshcapade trades studio precision for speed and accessibility: it may be slightly less detailed than a pro studio for some cases, but it works on any video and is orders of magnitude cheaper.

Meshcapade vs other markerless motion capture tools

Meshcapade is one of several AI-driven mocap solutions emerging in 2024–2026.  Others include Move.ai, DeepMotion, Rokoko Vision (dual-camera AI mocap), QuickMagic, and open-source solutions.  Industry comparisons place Meshcapade at the high end of quality.  For example, a 2025 review noted that Meshcapade “matches or surpasses top performers like Move AI” in animation accuracy, and it offers dedicated Unreal Engine plugins and editing support . 

The same review pointed out that cheaper/free tools (Rokoko Vision, Cyan Puppets, etc.) serve hobby or real-time preview uses, whereas Meshcapade targets professional results .  In short, Meshcapade competes with Move.ai for high-fidelity motion-from-video and has advantages like SMPL export and Unreal compatibility.  Compared to smartphone-based apps (which often target only full-body without detail), Meshcapade stands out for its breadth (full body, fingers, camera motion) and industry support .

How Meshcapade could integrate into Unreal Engine workflows

Epic is already preparing Meshcapade tools for Unreal. The Meshcapade team released plugins and codecs for real-time pipelines: for instance, they built an “SMPL codec” plugin that allows streaming body pose/shape data into Unreal Engine via LiveLink or USD .  In practice, this means you could use Meshcapade’s output directly in Unreal Editor: import SMPL or FBX data to rig a MetaHuman or custom character and drive its animation.  Meshcapade’s site and blog mention tools to import motions into Unreal, Roblox, and even Fortnite . 

Unreal Engine 5 users can thus expect an easier workflow: capture motion with Meshcapade, then use the provided Unreal plugin to retarget it to any character.  Because Meshcapade uses the industry-standard SMPL model, the retargeting into Unreal’s humanoid rigs is straightforward.  For example, Meshcapade’s Unreal plugin (available on their site) automates retargeting Meshcapade clips onto skeletons in UE5.  Overall, Epic will likely bake Meshcapade into the Unreal/MegaHuman ecosystem, giving developers a one-click way to animate characters from video.

yelzkizi Epic Games Acquires Meshcapade: What the Deal Means for Fortnite, Unreal Engine, and MetaHuman
yelzkizi Epic Games Acquires Meshcapade: What the Deal Means for Fortnite, Unreal Engine, and MetaHuman

What Meshcapade adds to MetaHuman Creator and MetaHuman Toolkit

Epic’s MetaHuman Creator and MetaHuman Toolkit let users design lifelike human avatars. Meshcapade adds a motion-capture and animation dimension to that system.  In other words, Meshcapade can provide ready-made animations (in SMPL or FBX) that you can apply to MetaHumans.  For example, you could film a person’s performance, process it with Meshcapade, and then use the resulting animation curves on a MetaHuman rig in Unreal.  This effectively bridges real-world movement with Epic’s virtual actors. 

Beyond motion, Meshcapade’s research may also improve body and pose realism under the hood of MetaHumans.  In addition, creators can mix in external assets – for instance, the PixelHair collection by Yelzkizi offers dozens of production-ready 3D hair grooms for Blender/Unreal (designed for MetaHuman use) . PixelHair allows creators to attach high-quality hair assets to MetaHumans without modeling hair from scratch. (Notably, PixelHair’s developer plans to add Blender’s new geometry-based hair tools, further easing workflow.) Meshcapade itself does not handle hair yet, but the acquisition signals that Epic is bolstering all aspects of digital humans – body, motion, and likely accessories like hair in the future.

What the Meshcapade acquisition means for Unreal Editor for Fortnite creators

Epic’s Fortnite team is deeply involved: the deal was orchestrated by Epic’s Fortnite studio (they’re opening the new Tübingen office) .  This suggests that Unreal Editor for Fortnite (UEFN) – the creative tool for community developers – may eventually benefit.  Although Fortnite characters today are stylized, these technologies could enhance Fortnite’s custom games.  For example, in Creative Mode one might import MetaHuman-like avatars animated by Meshcapade.  Or future Fortnite cinematics (Fortnite’s big live events) might use Meshcapade-driven animation for more realistic sequences.  While Epic has not announced specific Fortnite features yet, the team’s involvement and Mastilović’s comment that Meshcapade complements Epic’s goals imply that Fortnite creators could gain new human animation tools in UEFN down the line.

yelzkizi Epic Games Acquires Meshcapade: What the Deal Means for Fortnite, Unreal Engine, and MetaHuman
yelzkizi Epic Games Acquires Meshcapade: What the Deal Means for Fortnite, Unreal Engine, and MetaHuman

What the Meshcapade acquisition means for Fortnite character animation

In practical terms, Fortnite’s existing character assets (skins and emotes) may not change overnight.  However, Fortnite character animation workflows will gain from Epic’s better AI-mocap capabilities.  Epic’s digital-human leaders suggest that any motion captured via Meshcapade could be retargeted to Fortnite skeletons.  This could lead to more expressive emotes, in-game cutscenes, or NPC animations created from video.  It also aligns with Epic’s trend of enabling cinematic experiences within Fortnite (as seen in narrative events).  Ultimately, the acquisition means Epic can now offer Fortnite (and UEFN) teams high-end, AI-assisted animation pipelines—potentially letting creators film a stunt and see it play out in the game, instead of hand-keying every move.

Epic Games opening a Tübingen office in Cyber Valley: why it matters

As part of the deal, Epic is establishing its first European office in Tübingen’s Cyber Valley hub .  This gives Epic a foothold in a leading AI research cluster. Cyber Valley, in Germany, houses several AI startups and Max Planck researchers.  Epic’s presence there signals commitment to “AI Made in Germany,” as Max Planck Innovation’s head Bram Wijlands put it .  It means Epic can tap local AI talent and collaborate more closely with academic partners.  Geographically, it also diversifies Epic’s R&D beyond its U.S. offices.  For European developers, it might mean more local support and events.  In short, the Tübingen office connects Epic’s game/film tech with cutting-edge AI research, accelerating development of digital-human features.

yelzkizi Epic Games Acquires Meshcapade: What the Deal Means for Fortnite, Unreal Engine, and MetaHuman
yelzkizi Epic Games Acquires Meshcapade: What the Deal Means for Fortnite, Unreal Engine, and MetaHuman

Meshcapade Max Planck Institute origins: research spin-off to Epic acquisition

Meshcapade’s roots lie in academia.  It was founded in 2018 as a spin-off of the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems in Tübingen .  The company’s founders (including Meshcapade CEO Naureen Mahmood and CTO Talha Zaman) worked at Max Planck under Prof. Michael Black, co-creator of SMPL.  The startup even won the Max Planck Startup Award in 2022. 

Max Planck President Patrick Cramer praised the acquisition as a success story: a research idea that “quickly … found its way into practical applications – with global impact” .  This background explains why Meshcapade’s tech is research-driven: it builds directly on MPI’s breakthroughs in human shape modeling.  The Epic acquisition effectively pulls this cutting-edge research into the commercial world, merging an academic innovation into Epic’s ecosystem.

SMPL licensing after Epic buys Meshcapade: what changes for customers

Despite the acquisition, the SMPL body model remains managed by Max Planck Innovation (MPI).  The MPI press release makes clear that SMPL licensing will continue as before .  Specifically, “the core Max Planck technology remains available to both existing and new customers,” because MPI will take over direct licensing of SMPL . 

In practice, this means any studio or researcher who has licensed SMPL from Max Planck will not lose access or face new restrictions.  Epic did not obtain exclusive rights to SMPL; Epic will instead use SMPL under license in their own products.  For end users of Meshcapade’s tools (such as MoCapade users), nothing should change: the system will keep outputting SMPL-based data, and other licensees (in gaming, VR, healthcare, etc.) can continue using SMPL independently.

Digital humans for film and virtual production: Epic’s bigger strategy

This acquisition fits into Epic’s broader push into film, TV and virtual production. Epic has been positioning Unreal Engine and MetaHumans as key tools for filmmaking (e.g. LED-volume stages).  Realistic digital humans are critical for those industries.  Meshcapade’s AI motion capture expands Epic’s film toolkit: it provides a faster way to animate virtual actors on a movie set or previsualize scenes.  Epic’s CTO Kim Libreri emphasized that Meshcapade will help creators “across gaming, film and virtual production” .

By improving animation pipelines, Epic strengthens its ecosystem for all storytelling media.  In practice, we may see more movies and virtual productions using Unreal Engine with MetaHumans driven by Meshcapade motion.  It also makes Epic competitive with other tech companies (like NVIDIA Omniverse or Unity) in the digital-human space.  Overall, Epic’s bigger strategy is clear: lead in real-time 3D for games and films by bolstering every aspect of content creation, from asset generation (MetaHumans) to animation (Meshcapade) and rendering.

yelzkizi Epic Games Acquires Meshcapade: What the Deal Means for Fortnite, Unreal Engine, and MetaHuman
yelzkizi Epic Games Acquires Meshcapade: What the Deal Means for Fortnite, Unreal Engine, and MetaHuman

Privacy, consent, and GDPR in AI motion capture and digital human data

AI motion-capture raises important privacy issues.  Any video of real people contains personal data under laws like the EU’s GDPR.  Meshcapade itself advertises that its platform is “privacy-first – EU/GDPR compliant” .  This implies they have built-in measures (consent flows, data protection) for using human images.  Nevertheless, creators using Meshcapade should ensure they have legal consent from anyone filmed: the subject of the video should agree to have their likeness captured and digitized.

Without consent, the resulting 3D data could be considered biometric personal data, which is highly protected in Europe.  In short, using Meshcapade’s service responsibly means following privacy laws (secure data storage, opting in, anonymizing if needed).  As Epic integrates Meshcapade, it will also need to respect GDPR for EU customers.  No sources have reported any violations, and Meshcapade’s GDPR compliance statement suggests they take it seriously. But users must be aware: always obtain permission before converting someone’s video into a digital avatar.

What to expect next: Meshcapade roadmap under Epic Games

Looking ahead, Epic’s acquisition may accelerate Meshcapade’s feature development and integration.  Some items are already on the roadmap: for example, Meshcapade’s website teases “Hair Capture (Coming Soon)”, promising realistic 3D hair estimation .  Under Epic, we may see that arrive sooner and be tied into Unreal/MetaHuman (given PixelHair’s mention and Epic’s interest in digital characters).  We can also expect deeper Unreal integration: Meshcapade has announced plans and plugins for Unreal’s LiveLink and Omniverse . 

Epic might incorporate these tools into the Unreal Marketplace or MetaHuman Toolkit so developers can easily import Meshcapade animations.  Additionally, the startup’s ongoing improvements (e.g. multi-person capture, hand tracking) will likely continue – possibly as part of a new MoCapade 4.0.  Finally, because Meshcapade aims for cloud and on-premise deployment, Epic could bundle it as a service or add new pricing models.  In summary, expect more automation (better accuracy, hair and face capture), and tighter connection of Meshcapade’s pipeline with the Unreal/MetaHuman ecosystem in the near future.

yelzkizi Epic Games Acquires Meshcapade: What the Deal Means for Fortnite, Unreal Engine, and MetaHuman
yelzkizi Epic Games Acquires Meshcapade: What the Deal Means for Fortnite, Unreal Engine, and MetaHuman

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

  1. What is Meshcapade? Meshcapade is a German AI company that creates digital-human software. It uses machine learning to convert standard video of people into fully rigged 3D character animations. Essentially, it captures human motion and body shape from plain video. Meshcapade was founded as a Max Planck Institute spin-off in 2018 , and its tools output high-fidelity 3D motion data (using the SMPL body model) for games, film, and other media .
  2. Why did Epic buy Meshcapade? Epic acquired Meshcapade to enhance its digital-human technology. Meshcapade’s AI adds a new way to animate realistic characters, fitting Epic’s focus on MetaHumans. Epic’s CTO Kim Libreri said the deal will bring “powerful specialized tools for developing digital humans” to creators in games, film, and virtual production . In short, Epic wants Meshcapade’s motion-capture tech to help creators turn real human performance (from video) into animations in Unreal Engine.
  3. When was the acquisition announced? The deal was announced in mid-February 2026. Epic confirmed on Feb 18, 2026 (via its Newsroom on X/Twitter) that Meshcapade would join Epic, and major tech outlets reported it that day . Coverage continued on Feb 19 with official statements and press releases.
  4. How much did Epic pay for Meshcapade? The terms were not made public. Reports simply say Epic acquired Meshcapade for an “undisclosed sum” . We do not know the exact price or valuation.
  5. How will Meshcapade integrate with Unreal Engine? Meshcapade is developing plugins and workflows for Unreal. Their new “SMPL codec” tools allow streaming human body pose and shape into Unreal via LiveLink or USD . They also offer import/export in common formats (FBX, GLB, .SMPL) for Unreal. After the acquisition, we expect Epic will bundle or link these tools into Unreal Engine’s content pipelines (for example, via the MetaHuman Toolkit). Practically, developers could capture motion with Meshcapade and then retarget it to any UE character rig using these plugins .
  6. What features does Meshcapade have now? The latest Meshcapade (MoCapade 3.0) can capture multi-person scenes, camera motion, and detailed limb/finger motion from a single video . It exports 3D skeletons, world camera trajectories, and allows upload/download of data (even in .SMPL format). Its roadmap includes hair capture (currently labeled “coming soon” on the Meshcapade site ) and continued improvements in accuracy. Under Epic, more features like real-time processing or cloud services may be offered.
  7. What about existing SMPL users – will licensing change? No. Epic did not buy the SMPL license; Max Planck Innovation will continue licensing it. According to MPI, the SMPL model will remain available under the usual terms . Epic’s acquisition won’t affect current SMPL licensees – they will continue business as before. Epic will use SMPL internally in Meshcapade’s tools, but it isn’t restricting SMPL’s use by others.
  8. Does this affect Fortnite or its animations? Epic’s Fortnite studio led the deal and is opening the new German office . For Fortnite creators, this means potential future tools. While Fortnite’s in-game characters remain stylized for now, creators in Unreal Editor for Fortnite might one day use Meshcapade animations. This could enable filming a dance or stunt and directly applying it to a Fortnite avatar. No Fortnite-specific feature has been announced yet, but Epic’s VP (Digital Humans) said Meshcapade’s goals match Epic’s “existing goals and ideas” , implying cross-benefits for Fortnite’s development pipeline.
  9. How does Meshcapade compare to other AI mocap tools? Meshcapade is considered a top-tier solution. Compared to free or budget tools (like Rokoko Vision or Cyan Puppets) that offer basic motion capture, Meshcapade delivers very high accuracy – on par with Move.ai, according to a 2025 industry survey . It excels in capturing nuanced motions (like foot plants and hand poses) and supports Unreal integration out of the box . The trade-off is cost: Meshcapade’s subscription is higher than some competitors, but its professional-grade quality is why Epic invested in it.
  10. Are there privacy or legal issues using Meshcapade? Yes, users must respect privacy and data laws. Meshcapade states its platform is “privacy-first” and GDPR-compliant , but ultimately creators must have consent for any person filmed. Under GDPR (in Europe), a person’s likeness and motion data are personal data. In practice, you should only use Meshcapade on videos you own or where individuals have agreed. The software is built for enterprise use, including healthcare and fashion, so it includes data protection measures. But always ensure you have permission to capture and transform real people’s images.
yelzkizi Epic Games Acquires Meshcapade: What the Deal Means for Fortnite, Unreal Engine, and MetaHuman
yelzkizi Epic Games Acquires Meshcapade: What the Deal Means for Fortnite, Unreal Engine, and MetaHuman

Conclusion

Epic Games’ acquisition of Meshcapade represents a significant step in the company’s push into AI-driven digital humans.  By bringing Meshcapade’s markerless motion-capture tech into the Unreal/MetaHuman ecosystem, Epic is offering creators new ways to generate realistic animations from simple video.  The deal boosts Epic’s presence in Europe (Cyber Valley) and enhances its toolset for gaming and virtual production.  In sum, Epic’s investment in Meshcapade signals a future where capturing human performance is as easy as recording a video, and those performances can drive the next generation of games, films, and interactive experiences.

Sources and citation

  • Here are the direct URLs for each source (copy/paste ready). I’ve kept every URL inside code formatting so you can paste them cleanly.
  • Jay Peters (The Verge), “Epic is acquiring a company that makes AI tech for animating digital humans.” (Feb 18, 2026)
    https://www.theverge.com/games/880828/epic-is-acquiring-a-company-that-makes-ai-tech-for-animating-digital-humans (The Verge)
  • Colin Kirkland (MediaPost / MediaDailyNews), “Epic Games Acquires Firm That Makes 3D ‘Humans’.” (Feb 19, 2026)
    https://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/412940/epic-games-acquires-firm-that-makes-3d-humans.html (MediaPost)
  • Eddie Makuch (GameSpot), “Fortnite Studio Buys This Digital Human Company.” (Feb 18, 2026)
    https://www.gamespot.com/articles/fortnite-studio-buys-this-digital-human-company/1100-6538258/ (GameSpot)
  • Max-Planck-Gesellschaft (Press release), “Max Planck spin-off draws Epic Games to Tübingen.” (Feb 18, 2026)
    https://www.mpg.de/26082348/max-planck-spin-off-meshcapade-draws-epic-games-to-tuebingen (Max Planck Society)
  • Daniel Herbig (heise online), “Video recording animations: Epic Games buys Tübingen-based company Meshcapade.” (Feb 19, 2026) — English version
    https://www.heise.de/en/news/Video-recording-animations-Epic-Games-buys-Tuebingen-based-company-Meshcapade-11182302.html (heise online)
    • German original (same story)
      https://www.heise.de/news/Animationen-per-Videoaufnahme-Epic-Games-kauft-Tuebinger-Firma-Meshcapade-11182125.html (heise online)
  • Naureen Mahmood (Meshcapade blog on Medium), “Introducing MoCapade 3.0…”
    https://medium.com/meshcapade/introducing-mocapade-3-0-1f9d8af42098 (Medium)
    Note: Medium shows this as published Feb 5, 2025 (not Sept 2025). (Medium)
  • TATO Studio (LinkedIn / LinkedIn Pulse), “Best AI Video-to-Mocap Tools: A Complete Comparison (2025)”
    https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/best-ai-video-to-mocap-tools-complete-comparison-2025-tato-studio-m7a5f (LinkedIn)
  • Epic VP Vladimir Mastilović (quote source) — appears inside the MediaPost / MediaDailyNews article above (no separate standalone page)
    https://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/412940/epic-games-acquires-firm-that-makes-3d-humans.html (MediaPost)
  • Meshcapade official site — product pages / compliance pages
    • Markerless mocap feature overview (homepage)
      https://meshcapade.com/ (Meshcapade)
    • Product page: “Game-Ready 3D Characters from Video”
      https://meshcapade.com/animation (Meshcapade)
    • Page that explicitly mentions GDPR-aligned processing (“Enterprise-Grade Privacy & Controls”)
      https://meshcapade.com/fashion/ (Meshcapade)
    • Privacy Policy (GDPR basis, etc.)
      https://meshcapade.com/privacy-policy (Meshcapade)
  • Yelzkizi — PixelHair (ArtStation page)
    https://yelzkizi.artstation.com/ (yelzkizi.artstation.com)

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PixelHair ready-made Drake full 3D beard in Blender using Blender hair particle system
yelzkizi PixelHair Realistic female 3d character curly weave 4c hair in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair pre-made Drake Braids Fade Taper in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair ready-made iconic Juice Wrld dreads 3D hairstyle in Blender using hair particle system
yelzkizi PixelHair Realistic female 3d character Cardi B Bow Tie weave 4c hair in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair ready-made Jcole dreads 3D hairstyle in Blender using hair particle system
yelzkizi PixelHair Realistic female 3d character Sleek Side-Part Bob 3d hair in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair ready-made Kobe Inspired Afro 3D hairstyle in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair ready-made 3D fade dreads in a bun Hairstyle  in Blender
PixelHair ready-made Braids pigtail double bun 3D hairstyle in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair ready-made full  weeknd 3D moustache stubble beard in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair Realistic female 3d charactermohawk knots 4c hair in Blender using Blender hair particle system
yelzkizi PixelHair Realistic female 3d character curly afro 4c big bun hair with 2 curly strands in Blender using Blender hair particle system
yelzkizi PixelHair Realistic male 3d character fade 3d hair in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair ready-made Braids Bun 3D hairstyle in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair ready-made Polo G dreads 3D hairstyle in Blender using hair particle system
PixelHair ready-made full 3D beard in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair Realistic 3d character afro fade taper 4c hair in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair ready-made Long Dreads Bun 3D hairstyle in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair ready-made Scarlxrd dreads hairstyle in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair pre-made Omarion Braided Dreads Fade Taper in Blender using Blender hair particle system
yelzkizi PixelHair Realistic female 3d character Cardi B bob wig with bangs 3d hair in Blender using Blender hair particle system
yelzkizi PixelHair Realistic male 3d character curly fade with middle parting 3d hair in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair pre-made Chadwick Boseman Mohawk Afro Fade Taper in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair pre-made Drake Double Braids Fade Taper in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair ready-made dreads afro 3D hairstyle in Blender using hair particle system
PixelHair ready-made 3D hairstyle of Halle Bailey dreads knots in Blender with hair particle system
PixelHair Realistic 3d character afro dreads fade taper 4c hair in Blender using Blender hair particle system
yelzkizi PixelHair Realistic female 3d character Cardi B Double Bun Pigtail with bangs and   middle parting 3d hair in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair ready-made Vintage Bob Afro 3D hairstyle in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair ready-made Neymar Mohawk style fade hairstyle in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair Realistic female 3d character pigtail dreads 4c hair in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair ready-made spiked afro 3D hairstyle in Blender using hair particle system
PixelHair pre-made dreads / finger curls hairsty;e in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair Realistic female 3d character curly afro 4c ponytail bun hair in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair ready-made 3D full beard with magic moustache in Blender using Blender hair particle system
yelzkizi PixelHair Realistic female 3d character Pink Pixie Cut with Micro Fringe 3D Hair in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair pre-made Drake Braids Fade Taper in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair ready-made Top short dreads fade 3D hairstyle in Blender using Blender hair particle system
yelzkizi PixelHair Realistic female 3d character curly afro 4c big bun hair with scarf in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair ready-made faded waves 3D hairstyle in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair pre-made The weeknd Dreads 3D hairstyle in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair Realistic 3d character full beard in Blender using Blender hair particle system
yelzkizi PixelHair Realistic male 3d character 3D Buzz Cut 3d hair in Blender using Blender hair particle system
yelzkizi PixelHair Realistic female 3d character full dreads 4c hair in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair ready-made full weeknd 3D moustache stubble beard in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair ready-made chrome heart cross braids 3D hairstyle in Blender using hair particle system
PixelHair ready-made 3D hairstyle of Ski Mask the Slump god Mohawk dreads in Blender
PixelHair pre-made female 3d character Curly braided Afro in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair ready-made goatee in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair pre-made Burna Boy Dreads Fade Taper in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair ready-made iconic Lil Yatchy braids 3D hairstyle in Blender using hair particle system
PixelHair ready-made Pop smoke braids 3D hairstyle in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair ready-made 3D Jason Derulo braids fade hairstyle in Blender using hair particle system
yelzkizi PixelHair Realistic female 3d character 4 twist braids 4c afro bun hair with hair clip in Blender using Blender hair particle system
yelzkizi PixelHair Realistic Korean Two-Block Male 3d hair in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair ready-made 3D hairstyle of Lil uzi vert dreads in Blender
PixelHair ready-made iconic J.cole dreads 3D hairstyle in Blender using hair particle system
PixelHair Realistic Dreads 4c hair in Blender using Blender hair particle system
yelzkizi PixelHair Realistic female 3d character Pigtail dreads 4c big bun hair in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair ready-made iconic xxxtentacion black and blonde dreads 3D hairstyle in Blender using hair particle system
yelzkizi PixelHair Realistic male 3d character Chris Brown Curly High-Top Fade 3d hair in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair pre-made Ken Carson Fade Taper in Blender using Blender hair particle system
yelzkizi PixelHair Realistic female 3d character Layered Shag Bob with Wispy Bangs 3D Hair in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair ready-made Big Sean braids 3D hairstyle in Blender using hair particle system
PixelHair pre-made Afro Fade Taper in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair ready-made pigtail female 3D Dreads hairstyle in Blender with blender hair particle system
Bantu Knots 001
PixelHair ready-made 3D hairstyle of Nipsey Hussle Braids in Blender
PixelHair ready-made Afro fade 3D hairstyle in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair pre-made Nardo Wick Afro Fade Taper in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair Realistic 3d character dreads fade taper in Blender using Blender hair particle system
Fade 013
PixelHair ready-made full 3D goatee beard in Blender using Blender hair particle system
yelzkizi PixelHair Realistic Yeat-Style Van Dyke Beard 3D in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair pre-made Afro Fade Taper in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair ready-made 3D hairstyle of lewis hamilton Braids in Blender
PixelHair ready-made full Chris Brown 3D goatee in Blender using Blender hair particle system
Dreads 010
yelzkizi PixelHair Realistic female 3d character curly puffy 4c big hair in Blender using Blender hair particle system
yelzkizi PixelHair Realistic Yeat French Crop Fade male 3d character 3d hair in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair ready-made full 3D beard in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair Realistic 3d character bob afro  taper 4c hair in Blender using Blender hair particle system
yelzkizi PixelHair Realistic 3D Dreadlocks: Realistic Male Locs 3d hair in Blender using Blender hair particle system
PixelHair ready-made Chadwick Boseman full 3D beard in Blender using Blender hair particle system