You don't need an expensive Adobe subscription to open Illustrator files. Here's are three free or low-cost alternative ways ...

How do I open an AI file on my PC? To open and view an AI file on your Windows PC, you can use any of the following tools and software. GIMP and Inkscape are some good options to view AI files.

Though you can open this type of file in almost any Adobe application -- including Photoshop, InDesign, Acrobat and Flash -- the .ai file type is native to Adobe Illustrator.

How to convert an AI file into a PDF file using GIMP The steps to convert an AI file into a PDF file are as follows: Go to “ File > Open ” to open the AI file in GIMP. Alternatively, you can ...

2. Paint Cocreator, for generating AI art On Windows 11, Paint can now generate AI art for you. If you launch Paint, you’ll see a “Cocreator” button on the toolbar for that purpose.