I’ll be honest, the first time I really stumbled across Vegas Pro was when I was looking for a DVD authoring application for Windows a LONG time ago. DVD Architect was the most professional-looking application I could find at the time, which led me to discover Sony’s lineup of professional post-production tools, including Vegas Pro. Sound Forge was another application I had come across and used for years, although I never really associated it with Sony.
I’ve followed Vegas Pro’s development for a long time and have always been interested in giving it a proper try. With Boris FX now at the helm, and VEGAS Pro 2026 marking a new chapter in the application’s history, I thought it would be a good opportunity to take a trip down memory lane, look at how Vegas got here, and explore what this latest chapter might mean for its future.
Sonic Foundry Era (1999-2003)
Vegas 1.0 debuted in July 1999 as an audio-only editing application. In June 2000, Vegas Video 2.0 introduced video editing capabilities, setting the stage for the application we know today. Subsequent releases expanded its video effects, editing tools, and disc-authoring capabilities.
Vegas 1.0 (1999)
- Multitrack audio editing.
- Nondestructive audio editing and resampling.
Vegas Video 2.0 (2000)
- First video editing capabilities.
- Integrated audio and video timeline editing.
Vegas 3.0 (2001)
- New video effects.
- DVD burning and improved DV editing.
Vegas 4.0 (2003)
- Advanced color correction.
- 5.1 surround sound mixing.
- Application scripting and Steinberg ASIO support.
Sony Era (2004-2014)
Sony acquired Sonic Foundry’s creative software business in 2003, bringing Vegas, Sound Forge, and ACID Pro into its software lineup. Vegas continued developing under Sony Creative Software, eventually becoming Sony Vegas Pro. During this period, the application expanded its professional capabilities, supporting increasingly sophisticated video formats, higher resolutions, and advanced editing workflows.
Vegas 5.0 (2004)
- Improved compositing and editing tools.
- Expanded professional video format support.
Vegas 6.0 (2005)
- Improved multicamera and editing workflows.
- Expanded HDV and professional video support.
Vegas 7.0 (2006)
- Enhanced HD video editing.
- Improved timeline and compositing capabilities.
Vegas Pro 8.0 (2007)
- New professional editing interface.
- Expanded effects and compositing tools.
Vegas Pro 9.0 (2009)
- 4K resolution support.
- RED camera and XDCAM EX format support.
Vegas Pro 10 (2010)
- Stereoscopic 3D editing.
- Image stabilization.
- OpenFX plugin support.
Vegas Pro 11 (2011)
- GPU-accelerated video processing.
- Enhanced titling and stereoscopic 3D.
Vegas Pro 12 (2012)
- Expanded professional video format support.
- Improved GPU acceleration and compositing.
Vegas Pro 13 (2014)
- Enhanced collaboration and project interchange.
- Improved professional editing workflows.
MAGIX Era (2016-2026)
In May 2016, Sony announced the sale of its creative software division to MAGIX. I’ll be 100% honest. I had never heard of MAGIX, and had figured that it was really the nail in the coffin for Vegas but, the little engine that could kept moving forward with updates right through to 2024.
Vegas Pro 14 (2016)
- First release under MAGIX.
- Improved color grading and interface.
Vegas Pro 15 (2017)
- Redesigned user interface.
- Improved timeline editing and effects workflows.
Vegas Pro 16 (2018)
- Motion tracking.
- 360-degree video editing and HDR support.
Vegas Pro 17 (2019)
- Nested timelines.
- Improved stabilization and multicamera editing.
Vegas Pro 18 (2020)
- Expanded GPU acceleration.
- Improved color grading and compositing.
Vegas Pro 19 (2021)
- Improved color grading panel.
- Optical Flow slow motion and AI-based video enhancement.
Vegas Pro 20 (2022)
- Speech-to-text and automatic subtitles.
- VST3 audio plugin support and enhanced color grading.
Vegas Pro 21 (2023)
- Z-Depth compositing.
- AI Smart Masking and integrated Mocha tracking.
Vegas Pro 22 (2024)
- Enhanced AI-assisted editing.
- Improved masking and compositing workflows.
Boris FX Era
On March 30, 2026, Boris FX announced its acquisition of Vegas Pro, Sound Forge, and ACID Pro from MAGIX. Now, this isn’t the first foray into the world of NLE’s for Boris FX. Boris FX has had Media 100 for over 20 years, but it’s long gone to the wayside with the rise of Premiere, Media Composer and Resolve. Looking back to June 2004, Optibase acquired Media 100’s assets. Optibase mainly focused on video technology and delivery, rather than editing software. Buying Media 100 was a way for the company to expand into the video editing market. Following a restructuring in January 2005, Boris FX acquired Optibase’s Final Effects Complete suite (Damn, I loved FEC) in June, then took over Media 100’s nonlinear editing business between September and October 2005. I remember Media 100 from way back in the day, so Boris FX’s purchase of Vegas is really no surprise, as they have had their effects working in Vegas for a while now, and the purchase gets Boris FX back in the NLE business with their products already integrated into the Vegas pipeline.
As said by Boris himself – “We’re thrilled to add Vegas Pro (formerly Sony Vegas), Sound Forge, and Acid Pro to our product family. We look forward to advancing all three with more power behind them. Boris FX has never been a single-host plugin company, and this acquisition strengthens that commitment. We will continue supporting every major platform and host application as we always have, while our combined engineering teams accelerate innovation by bringing shared AI technology across our entire product line.” What I think is really important here is that, according to the press release “The product development teams and engineers behind Vegas Pro, Sound Forge, and Acid Pro, based in Madison, Wisconsin, and Germany, will remain with the organization.”, which will obviously keep the ship pointed in the right direction for the immediate future. After acquiring Vegas in March of 2026, Boris FX went right to work adding new features to Vegas including:
- Nikon ZR N-RAW Support
- New Color Management System
- AI Auto Captions
- ProRes RAW support
And, some Boris FX specific updates include:
- Continuum Title Pack – Brings Boris FX Continuum’s professional 2D and 3D titling technology into VEGAS Pro, including Title Studio and animated text effects.
- Boris FX AI Z-Depth Model – Introduces Boris FX-trained AI technology for generating depth maps, separating foreground and background elements, and creating depth-based compositing effects.
Over my next few articles, I’ll be taking a more in-depth look at Vegas Pro, as it’s a NLE I’ve never used, and have always been fascinated by. With the acquisition by Boris FX, and the additions they’re starting to make to (along with current OFX support for Continuum and Sapphire), it’s a cost effective alternative NLE that content creators really should take a look at.