First Steps to Becoming an OpenUSD Developer#
Welcome to the NVIDIA OpenUSD documentation! This page will help you navigate the resources available to you to start learning to develop with OpenUSD. We recommend starting with our learning content.
Start Learning#
We recommend starting with our free Learn OpenUSD learning path. This learning path will guide you through a series of courses and tutorials that will give you the best introduction to developing with OpenUSD. You can start learning without leaving the comfort of your web browser. Later tutorials, will guide you through setting up an environment on your computer to write OpenUSD Python code.
Get OpenUSD#
The OpenUSD source code is located at the OpenUSD GitHub repository. You can clone the repository and follow the repository’s build instructions to build OpenUSD from the source. Alternatively, NVIDIA provides pre-built binaries for Windows and Linux. If you just need to use the OpenUSD Python API, you can install usd-core directly from PyPI.
Look Up Code#
When you write OpenUSD code, technical references like the Python API documentation and C++ API documentation can help when you need to look up a particular class or function. For example, you may use these resources when you want to browse all the member functions of the Usd.Stage class or the return type of Usd.Prim.GetTypeName(). On the other hand, when you have a high-level task or concept in mind, you may find the exact snippet you need in our USD code samples or they may help orient you towards the libraries you need to use.
Get Help#
OpenUSD Study Group#
There is a group of developers on the Omniverse Discord server interested in supporting each other as they learn OpenUSD. The study group meets every Tuesday at 2:00 PM (PT) to cover and discuss scheduled topics in a beginner-friendly environment. There is also a dedicated channel to ask OpenUSD questions. Join the Discord server and ask about the OpenUSD Study Group.
More OpenUSD Forums#
There are a few other places where you will find OpenUSD experts generously sharing their time to answer questions. If you are working within the Omniverse platform, the OpenUSD category in the NVIDIA Omniverse forums is a good place to get help from Omniverse and OpenUSD experts.
For general OpenUSD questions, there are two other forums where the OpenUSD community likes to gather. The first is the Alliance for OpenUSD (AOUSD) forum. The other is the #wg-usd channel on the Academy Software Foundation (ASWF) Slack.
Get Certified#
The OpenUSD Development Certification provides developers with a clear and meaningful goal as they progress through their learning journey. The certification serves as a benchmark, ensuring that you have mastered the essential concepts and skills needed to work effectively with OpenUSD. Achieving this credential not only boosts your confidence, but also demonstrates that you are prepared to take on production-ready, scalable digital twin and physical AI projects. It signals to employers and collaborators that you have the expertise required to contribute to complex, real-world OpenUSD workflows.