I'm sure there are multiple next steps possible in parallel, but one is most likely that those apps become accessible in a browser with just a click. That's my approach with Polygonjs ( https://polygonjs.com )

It's also interesting to look at how those apps have evolved over the last 20 years to get a sense of where we might be in the next 20. For instance, even though Houdini has always be a very open package, it's user base exploded when it explicitly created Houdini engine to integrate with Maya/Unreal/Unity. So integration is a key factor and we can hope to see apps become even more interchangeable.

Marketplaces, like blender's ( https://blendermarket.com/ ) or Houdini's ( https://www.orbolt.com/ ) will also grow, increasing collaboration between artists and developers, just like github increased collaboration. That should be accelerated as teams become more and more remote-only.

Then I'm curious to see when AI will make a dent in 3D creation, just like we have seen for 2D works with midjourney. Maybe there will be a github copilot for 3D?

And maybe in 10-20 years, we'll arrive at a combination of those items, as in an AI powered marketplate that guesses tools the community may need.