Abode’s Creative Software Dreams Seemed Improbable But Backers Worry They’re Impossible

Last year, artist and activist Stuart Semple took aim at Adobe with Abode, a Kickstarter campaign to create a new suite of Adobe-like creative apps with a lifetime license and no subscriptions. More than a year later, there is no software in sight.

Since the Kickstarter campaign’s updates, the most recent of which was published by Semple on June 1, 2024, are private to backers, PetaPixel has spent the last few weeks trying to find one of the 3,031 backers to learn what Semple most recently told Abode’s funders. This week, one reached out.

The most recent update, titled “Long overdue update,” explains that Abode has run into hurdles with development, both in terms of human resources and money.

Hi Everyone,

Sorry I’ve not been in touch for a bit. I’ve been working super hard on the project.

Obviously, there is a delay with this one. I hoped to get the software to you in the spring and we are now going into the summer.

Unfortunately, the geeks who were working with me on it were a bit unreliable and I’ve had to switch out two new people.

They are working hard, and it’s looking good — but I need to be upfront about the fact that it’s not going to be ready for a bit longer. It is a hugely ambitious piece of work.

I know it’s disappointing news but to do this properly I’m going to need to manage your expectations and let you know that it will be like the end of the year now.

The project has gone over budget and I’m continuing to support it myself and I’m very excited to get you your software.

Please keep the faith, it will be worth it.

Stuart

After raising nearly $235,000 on Kickstarter last summer, Semple spoke with PetaPixel near the end of July 2023.

“It’s always been very serious, but my work is always satirical. I like to deal with serious topics in a lighthearted manner. I find humor is a great way to raise awareness for something,” Semple told PetaPixel last year.

“The subject is very serious, we have a cost of living crisis, we have creators being replaced by AI, and times are tough out here. The idea is to try and help a little bit by liberating the tools we rely upon. I’ve done this for decades in my other work.”

At that time, Semple reiterated that the project was very real despite its satirical nature.

“There’s a really urgent need for a suite of creative tools for creators that they actually own rather than rent,” he explained.

He said the $235,000 of backing was “more than adequate” to deliver the promised software, which was meant to arrive as version 1.0 by June or July of this year. There should have also been some sort of beta version available to backers a few months ago.

Obviously, that time has passed, as Semple admitted in his most recent update to backers.

Delays are part of software development, especially when the project is this ambitious. However, despite Semple’s pleas for people to “keep the faith,” patience appears to be wearing thin.

“This is starting to smell like vaporware,” one backer wrote on Kickstarter last week.

In response to someone asking for more information about progress, another backer wrote, “By now, you should know this is obviously a scam. There won’t be any updates or any Abode.”

“Not going to lie, I totally was up for this. Now I feel like a complete sucker,” a funder lamented.

“We are too naïve… ” someone else added.

“Just admit that you’re not following through with this, stick to paints and give us back our money because this isn’t happening,” a disgruntled Abode backer said three months ago.

In the meantime, as backers wonder where the software they paid for is or if it will ever arrive at all, Semple has started more ventures, leading to worries about him being “spread too thin.”

In June, Semple launched Burnr, “a dumb phone for smart people” on Indiegogo. The campaign bombed, achieving $15,470 in backing of a $198,522 fixed goal.

“Luckily we’ve made a lot of products before and got them into the hands of hundreds of thousands of people around the world,” Semple wrote on Burnr’s unsuccessful Indiegogo campaign, referencing the challenges of making a product like the Burnr “dumb” phone.

“Of course, there’s always the potential for the unexpected to happen. We’ve got an amazing team and we will overcome any obstacle. Of course, we will keep you posted every step of the way,” Semple continued. Abode backers may find themselves experiencing a bit of déjà vu.

Semple also launched a hot sauce earlier this year called “Anal Apocalypse,” dubbed “the world’s hottest hot sauce for arseholes.” It’s available through Semple’s Culture Hustle business for $19.99, and seemingly really does exist.

More than a year after Abode’s successful Kickstarter campaign, what little information that exists about the creative software inspires little confidence among those who gave Semple their money. While some Kickstarter commenters remain hopeful, the majority are frustrated.

It’s easy to understand their frustrations. On the one hand, they paid for a promise that has gone unfulfilled and feel like they are not adequately being kept in the loop concerning progress. On the other, people were willing to fork over between $50 and $80 — more if they wanted a hooded sweatshirt — because they were frustrated with the current software options.

Abode Team Says the Software Is Still Coming

PetaPixel spoke to Semple’s team, asking if they had any comment on Abode’s lack of progress and the general dismay that some backers have expressed in recent months.

“Sadly we did run into some difficulties and delays with the initial timeline, sadly the original developers didn’t deliver the work that was what we hoped,” a spokesperson says over email.

“The new team are making good progress and we are still extremely confident to share a fully functional beta by the end of the year as promised in the last update.”

The team admits that the initial target hasn’t been met, but the team is “working extremely hard” to make Abode “as good as we can.”

There are three developers working on Abode, two of which are “almost full time” and a third who does user interface work on the weekend.

“As it’s an indie project, we do not have the multi-million dollar resources and investors similar projects have, so we are relying on the goodwill of the devs.”

As for criticism and concerns from backers, the representative says that “many backers have been extremely supportive and their letters of encouragement and support have been incredible over the past few months.”

“They’ve been really patient.”

But Patience Has Worn Thin

However, “supportive” is not the prevailing mood over on the Kickstarter page. Granted, that comments section doesn’t necessarily reflect the views of all 3,000-plus backers — just those who take the time to comment, the vast majority of whom are upset or confused.

“The nature of Kickstarter is that things do change but we are confident the wait will be worth it,” the representative concludes.

PetaPixel asked if the team could share screenshots of the work that has been done, but the request was declined. They “don’t want to share anything that isn’t good enough.”

If Semple’s June 2024 update and the company’s comments are to be believed, his anti-establishment (anti-Adobe) software dream is not yet over. However, his backers are, by and large, not heeding his words — they have lost faith.