After selling out two limited-release drops in minutes, Telepathic Instruments has announced Orchid Drop 3, the official global launch of its breakthrough songwriting instrument, available globally on October 10, 2025, at 10:00 AM local time in Australasia (AEST), Americas (PST), and Europe/UK (CET).
Orchid has already become one of the most talked-about new instruments in music technology, quietly shaping the sound and songwriting of musicians around the world. It’s instantly recognisable in Kid Cudi’s “Submarine” from his 2025 album Free; Don Toliver used Orchid to write chords on his new track ‘Call Back’; whilst other artists seen using Telepathic’s “ideas machine” include Janelle Monáe, Diplo, Ryan Tedder, Fred Again, Joy Anonymous, Madison Beer, Logic, Mark Hoppus, Murda Beatz, Gracie Abrams and Sarah Landry.
Conceived more than a decade ago by Kevin Parker (Tame Impala) as a personal songwriting tool, Orchid has since grown into something much larger. With input from its first 4,000 adopters—collectively known as The Garden—Telepathic has turned feedback into features, ideas into interfaces, and accidents into innovations in this third release. Orchid is designed to help songwriters, producers, and artists find what’s on their mind, and what began as Parker’s sketchpad has evolved into a refined, community-shaped instrument, now ready for its first true global release.
What’s New for Orchid Drop 3
Orchid may look like a synth, with a keyboard and some buttons — but it’s not just a synth. It’s an ideas machine, designed to help musicians get out of their head and into the music. Built directly on feedback from The Garden community, Drop 3 introduces a host of new features that expand Orchid’s creative range:
• Beats – Exclusive pre-programmed beats by Kevin Parker
• Filter – A dedicated cutoff frequency filter for shaping sound precisely
• Quantisation – Keeps loops locked on time
• Save Sounds – Modify and save your own User Sounds directly on Orchid
• Loop Save + Recall – Capture spontaneous ideas and bring them back instantly
• Drum FX – New rhythmic controls for Orchid’s beat engine
• 10 New Sounds – All designed by Kevin Parker
Introducing Pistil
The Telepathic ecosystem now extends from hardware to software, allowing you to get your ideas out of your head, into your Orchid, and finally, into your DAW via MIDI. The original synth engine that Parker used to design the Orchid’s 60 onboard sounds is now available as a plugin giving users:
• Access to the Telepathic Instruments universe of sounds
• The ability to create, customise and save sounds without an Orchid
• Two-way sync with Orchid, allowing you to take sounds on the go and get ideas directly into your DAW
A complete sound editor powered by Orchid’s three custom-designed synth engines (polyphonic subtractive, FM, and vintage EP) Pistil will be available bundled with Orchid ($699 USD) or as a standalone plugin ($129 USD).
How to Orchid: infomercial meets instructional guide.
To celebrate the launch, Telepathic Instruments has produced an irreverent instructional video starring comedians Matt Berry and Jemaine Clement. Shot at Pony Studios in London, the film channels the eccentricity of 1990s synth DVDs—equal parts Orchid tutorial and comedy sketch—serving as a playful love letter to chords, synthesis, and the joy of making music.
Watch Here
Orchids drop on 10/10 at 10am
Orchid Drop 3 will be available exclusively via telepathicinstruments.com on October 10, 2025, at 10:00AM local time across Telepathic’s key markets. After two beta releases selling out within minutes, this is Telepathic’s third, and largest release. Early access will be available to members of The Garden in Patreon.
In the lead-up to the launch, Telepathic Instruments are opening a ‘Flower Shop’ for people to play with Orchid in Los Angeles on October 2-5, followed by a pop-up at Amsterdam Dance Event, taking over Filling Pieces in the heart of the city on October 22–26.
About Telepathic Instruments
Founded by Kevin Parker, Ignacio Germade, Charl Laubscher, Chris Adams, Sophie Parker and Tom Cosm, Telepathic Instruments is a music technology company dedicated to building intuitive, insightful, iconic tools that help musicians find what’s on their mind.
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