P 
Procreate
Survived by publicly refusing to add AI, and being rewarded for it.
NOT REALLY
why this verdict
Keep paying — OpenAI has not replaced it
OpenAI's version overlaps, but does not finish the design job, so this one still earns its $2/mo.
- A named launch, not a vibe named, unlinked
- Its market explicitly rejected generative art. OpenAI, March 25, 2025 — no announcement link recorded yet.
- How much of the job it covers not the job editorial call
- Parts of it. The job still needs the tool to get finished.
- Is there a free way to do it? yes
- 1 of 2 listed replacements have a usable free tier: Krita.
- What the call is worth $24/yr
- $2/mo at the entry paid tier — $24 a year per seat.
Reason composed from the fields above missing: announcement linked recorded: free replacement listed recorded: two or more escape hatches
- Threatened by
- OpenAI
- Since
- March 25, 2025
- List price
- $2/mo
- Per year
- $24
The backstory
Procreate's customers are illustrators who draw. When the company said plainly that it would not add generative AI, the response from that audience was overwhelmingly positive. That is a rare case where the strategic answer to the AI wave was to take a side. The one-time price and the tactile drawing experience are things a prompt does not replace.
Escape hatches
K 
Krita Free open-source painting app.
krita.org open_in_new C 
Clip Studio Paint Illustration and comics focus.
clipstudio.net open_in_new1 of 2 replacements have a usable free tier.