Compressed Format

SPZ

SPZ is Niantic’s open compressed file format for 3D Gaussian Splats, designed to make splats much smaller while keeping visual quality practical.

Stage: Utility / DeliveryMobile exportSmaller filesViewer interoperability

Open official linkOfficial SPZ Page->

What It Does

SPZ matters because raw Gaussian Splatting PLY files can be too large for mobile upload, browser download, and casual sharing. It gives capture apps and viewers a compact interchange format.

The format is useful when the same scan needs to move between Scaniverse, web viewers, conversion tools, and custom apps without carrying a giant source PLY everywhere.

How To Use It In 3DGS

Export SPZ from Scaniverse or convert into SPZ with a compatible converter such as gsbox, GaussForge, or other pipeline tooling.
Check coordinate-system handling during conversion; SPZ explicitly documents coordinate-system conversion options.
Preview the converted result in a viewer that supports SPZ before deleting any source files.
Keep PLY or another high-quality source version when the asset is still in editing or archival stages.

Things To Watch

Compressed format support varies by viewer, so verify target compatibility before choosing SPZ as the only deliverable.
Coordinate-system mismatches can show up as flipped, rotated, or mirrored splats.
Compression is excellent for delivery, but it should not become the only master copy for high-value scans.

Official And Related Links

Official SPZ Page Niantic SPZ GitHub Scaniverse

What To Check During Conversion

Confirm spherical harmonics support and antialiasing metadata expectations if the model was trained with a newer pipeline.
Record the source coordinate system and target runtime coordinate system so later engine integrations do not become guesswork.
Compare file size, point count, color fidelity, and orientation in at least one neutral viewer before publishing.

Implementation Notes

The GitHub library describes SPZ as a gzipped stream with a small header followed by Gaussian attributes such as positions, alphas, colors, scales, rotations, and spherical harmonics.
The official Scaniverse page positions SPZ as a mobile-friendly format, useful when upload/download and on-device storage are real constraints.

SPZ