Avid to showcase new version of Media Composer at IBC as criticism over shared storage limits mounts

Avid will introduce the next version of its Media Composer editing platform at IBC 2026 in Amsterdam, including expanded collaboration tools, deeper integration with Avid Content Core and new AI-assisted workflows — while also introducing controversial new limitations on shared storage.

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The company will showcase Media Composer 2026.8 during the 2026 convention, which starts Sept. 11, 2026. The update will be available Sept. 1, 2026.

Among the changes is an expansion of Media Composer Shared Projects, which allows editors to collaborate across shared storage environments. Shared Projects using Avid Nexis will now be available beginning with the Media Composer standard tier, while moving support for integration with select third-party shared storage systems to the enterprise tier. 

Avid said the change is intended to give production teams more flexibility as editing workflows increasingly span multiple locations and storage platforms.

“Media Composer has always been built around the way professional editors actually work, and that principle is shaping how we bring AI into the editing experience,” said Kenna Hilburn, Avid’s chief product officer, in a statement.

Hilburn said Avid is using Content Core to bring AI into existing production workflows, automating preparation and routine work while keeping editorial decisions under the control of editors.

Media Composer 2026.8 will also introduce several editing and workflow features, including PhraseFindAI Multicam Auto Cut. The feature uses speaker identification and speech boundaries to automatically create multicamera cuts that editors can then modify.

Transcript tools are also being expanded with the ability to revert transcript edits, split segments and continuously play material in the viewer.

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Other additions include an updated OpenTimelineIO 2.0 adapter designed to improve timeline exchanges with third-party applications and a new “What’s New” window that highlights recently added features and provides links to documentation.

The release will also add choose bin column search, swap audio track from subclip, Titler+ keyframe rectification and expanded APIs for automation and third-party integrations.

Avid is also restructuring its Media Composer product tiers. Media Composer First will remain a free entry-level version, while Standard, Ultimate and Enterprise will offer progressively expanded professional, AI-assisted and collaboration capabilities.

At IBC2026, Avid will preview another AI-assisted feature called Ready to Edit. The tool is designed to automate parts of content preparation before material reaches an editor.

The company will also demonstrate tighter integration between Media Composer and Avid Content Core. A Content Core panel within Media Composer will allow editors to search for and access assets stored across an organization without leaving the editing application. Users will also be able to publish Content Core assets directly from Media Composer.

Avid plans to demonstrate a Google Gemini panel as part of its expanding AI capabilities and an agentic orchestration layer intended to coordinate automated tasks across production workflows.

The company will also preview its plans for browser-based Media Composer workflows. Initial web editing capabilities will operate through Avid Content Core, allowing users to review and prepare material in a browser before moving projects into the desktop Media Composer application for more extensive editing.

The 2026.8 update is already drawing criticism from some editors and post-production teams over changes to how Media Composer works with third-party shared storage.

Beginning with the new release, Avid will block an unsupported method that allowed some third-party storage systems to mimic Avid Nexis or ISIS functionality for shared projects, including bin locking. The feature allows multiple editors and assistants to work within the same project while reducing the risk of overwriting another user’s changes.

Avid described the move in a knowledge base article as a “security and workflow integrity update,” saying unsupported third-party configurations can create risks including project conflicts, overwritten work and data loss.

Users who want bin locking with Media Composer 2026.8 will need either Avid Nexis storage or the enterprise edition, which adds official support for qualified third-party shared storage.

That means customers using Media Composer Ultimate with storage platforms such as EditShare, Facilis, LucidLink or OWC Jellyfish could face additional licensing costs if they want to upgrade while maintaining those workflows.

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The change will also affect third-party tools that relied on Nexis emulation. 

The decision has generated discussion among editors online because competing editing platforms generally take a less restrictive approach to shared storage. Adobe Premiere Pro’s Productions workflow can operate on a variety of shared storage systems, while Team Projects allows multiple editors to collaborate without traditional project locking. DaVinci Resolve also includes collaborative editing tools that are not tied to a specific storage vendor.

Avid notes that customers will not face the storage system limitations unless they upgrade to Media Composer 2026.8. Users who remain on earlier releases can continue using their existing third-party configurations but will not be able to take advantage of other new features without facing the possibility of additional costs.