Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1538144
M OT I O N P I CTU R E S O U N D E D I TO R S 89 consistent for more than 25 years. The company provides audio professionals with tools that enhance creativity and productivity. Founded in 2000 by CEO Martin H. Klein, who is still the CEO of the company today, Audiokinetic has consistently focused on solving complex challenges for audio creators working in interactive audio, starting with Wwise and now expanding into content with Strata. Rather than marking a new chapter, Strata represents a logical extension of Audiokinetic's foundational vision. The company's original business plan from the early 2000s included the desire to develop both Wwise and audio content specifically adapted for interactive audio. However, the complexity of developing Wwise required nearly two decades of dedicated focus before returning to the audio content concept. So, the vision behind Strata has grown directly from the same DNA that created Wwise. Both products share the philosophy that creators should never be limited by their tools but rather empowered to realize their full creative potential. Strata applies this philosophy to a different layer of the audio creation process: the source material itself. Feedback-Driven Development Audiokinetic has long been known for pioneering interactive audio through Wwise. How do you see Strata complementing that legacy as part of the next generation of tools? Nour Al Hammoud: Strata and Wwise form a complementary ecosystem that addresses the entire audio production pipeline from source to implementation. Wwise established itself as the leading solution for interactive audio implementation, providing sound designers with sophisticated tools for controlling how audio behaves in games. Strata now extends this control backward to the source material stage. This complementary relationship is evident in their technical integration. Strata collections are designed with interactive audio in mind, and sounds can be seamlessly transferred to Wwise using tools like ReaWwise. The workflow is intentionally designed so that customized Strata content flows naturally into Wwise projects, maintaining the organizational structure and naming conventions that interactive audio projects require. More importantly, both tools share the same design philosophy: They expose the maximum number of creative levers to the user. Where traditional sound libraries provide only the final rendered result, Strata exposes every layer, every processing decision, every timing choice—just as Wwise exposes every parameter of interactive audio behavior. Together, they represent a generation of tools that empower creators to achieve exactly what they envision. Tools That Empower From Wwise to Strata, Audiokinetic has consistently developed tools that empower creators. How important has community feedback been in shaping these tools across the years, especially as you approach this anniversary? Nour Al Hammoud: Audiokinetic has built its development philosophy around community feedback. Our user-driven approach has shaped both Wwise's evolution and Strata's creation, with developers around the world providing insights that inform every feature and product decision. We focus on solving real problems faced by audio professionals, so this continuous feedback loop is the driving force behind all developments at Audiokinetic. As Audiokinetic passes its 25- year milestone, Strata is more than a new product. It reflects the company's long-standing commitment to solving the real- world challenges of interactive audio. Just as Wwise changed how sound is implemented in games by giving sound designers control at runtime, Strata brings that same philosophy to the source material. Instead of flat, final assets, it gives you the full session. You can open it, tweak it, break it apart, and make it your own without having to start from scratch. The workflow fits naturally. Strata helps reduce iteration time, keeps naming and structure consistent, and speeds up revisions. You can stay in REAPER, transfer directly to Wwise, and avoid wasting time tracking down files or rebuilding sounds. Tools like ReaWwise connect the two environments directly, making implementation feel like an extension of your design work. The collections are not just well organized. They are created by experienced specialists and designed to be useful beyond delivery. You can reverse- engineer a sound, study the layers and plug-ins, and adapt it to your needs. For students and early-career sound designers, Strata offers a rare look into professional workflows. For educators, it is a practical teaching tool for showing how sound is built, named, and delivered in production environments. Strata is a continuation of Audiokinetic's mission to empower creators. It was built for the way games are made now, and it is only going to get stronger as the community grows.