The most significant technical shift in v18.0 (initially in public beta) was the introduction of Multi-Frame Rendering.
For the first time, After Effects could utilize multiple CPU cores to render frames in parallel, rather than processing them sequentially on a single core. Adobe After Effects 2021 v18.0
Adobe After Effects 2021 (v18.0), released in March 2021, focused on modernizing the application's core architecture through two major shifts: a redesigned and the introduction of Multi-Frame Rendering (MFR) . This version aimed to bridge the gap between 2D motion graphics and professional 3D compositing while addressing long-standing performance bottlenecks on multi-core systems. 1. Architectural Overhaul: Multi-Frame Rendering (MFR) The most significant technical shift in v18