World Labs, the AI startup founded by researcher Fei-Fei Li, has released Marble, its first commercial product. Marble is a world model that generates editable 3D environments from various inputs including text prompts, images, videos, 3D layouts, and panoramas. The product is now publicly available through freemium and paid subscription tiers.
The launch positions World Labs ahead of competitors in the emerging world model space. While startups like Decart and Odyssey have released free demos and Google’s Genie remains in limited research preview, Marble distinguishes itself by creating persistent, downloadable 3D environments. According to the company, this approach results in less visual inconsistency compared to models that generate worlds in real-time as users explore them.
Key features and editing tools
Marble offers several input methods that give users varying levels of control. Single text or image prompts provide quick generation, while multi-image and video inputs allow the model to capture spaces from different angles, creating more accurate digital representations. The company states this reduces the amount of detail the model must invent.
The product includes AI-native editing tools. Users can modify generated worlds by removing objects, changing visual styles, or restructuring portions of environments. An experimental feature called Chisel functions as a 3D editor where users create coarse spatial layouts using basic shapes like boxes and planes, then add text prompts to define visual details. This separates structural decisions from stylistic ones.
Additional features include world expansion, which adds detail to selected regions, and a composer mode that combines multiple worlds into larger spaces. Generated environments can be exported as Gaussian splats, triangle meshes, or videos with pixel-accurate camera control.
Pricing and intended applications
World Labs offers Marble in four tiers: Free (four generations), Standard ($20/month, 12 generations), Pro ($35/month, 25 generations with commercial rights), and Max ($95/month, 75 generations with full features).
According to co-founder Justin Johnson, the initial target markets are gaming, visual effects for film, and virtual reality. For game development, Johnson explains that Marble can generate background environments and ambient spaces that developers import into game engines like Unity or Unreal Engine. In VFX work, the 3D assets allow artists to control camera movements with frame-level precision, addressing limitations in AI video generators. The generated worlds are compatible with Vision Pro and Quest 3 VR headsets.
Johnson also noted potential robotics applications. Marble could simulate training environments for robots, addressing the lack of large-scale training data in robotics compared to other AI fields.
In a recent manifesto, Fei-Fei Li describes Marble as the first step toward achieving spatial intelligence in AI systems. Li argues that while large language models taught machines to process language, world models like Marble could enable machines to understand three-dimensional spaces and physical interactions. The company suggests this capability could eventually extend beyond creative and robotics applications into scientific research and medicine.
World Labs emerged from stealth in 2024 with $230 million in funding. The company released Marble in limited beta preview two months before the public launch.
Sources: Dr. Fei-Fei Li, Worldlabs, TechCrunch
