Paramount has shown little financial appetite for such an undertaking. This archival roadblock forced the Star Trek community to take matters into their own hands. Between 2020 and 2021, an explosion in artificial intelligence technology gave birth to the definitive fan-made DS9 S01 AI Upscale projects in 1080p. The Technical Roadblock: Why DS9 Looks Bad on Modern TVs
Excellent for cleaning up the heavy film grain and analog noise inherent in early 1993 television broadcasts.
The computer screens and station signage became legible rather than colorful blurs.
This 2020-2021 upscale is currently the best way to experience the first season of Deep Space Nine on a modern 1080p screen. It respects the cinematography (the shadowy, noir-ish lighting of the station) while scrubbing away the digital haze of the 90s. star trek deep space 9 s01 ai upscale 1080p 2020 2021
The community-driven upscales of 2020 and 2021 did more than just provide fans with a superior way to watch episodes like "Emissary" or "Duet." They proved a vital proof of concept. The stunning results showed the entertainment industry that AI could bridge the gap between archival television limitations and modern high-definition display expectations.
The years 2020 and 2021 served as a major turning point for consumer-grade artificial intelligence. Software suites like (now Topaz Video AI) matured to a level where desktop computers could execute complex temporal and spatial interpolation. Instead of simply stretching a 480p image to fill a 1080p canvas—which results in a blurry, pixelated mess—neural networks analyze thousands of frames to "guess" and generate the missing pixel data.
The breakthrough software that fueled the DS9 upscaling movement was (now known as Topaz Video AI), alongside open-source alternatives like Video2X and Waifu2x modified for real-world video. Paramount has shown little financial appetite for such
Unlike TNG ’s $12M remaster, this project cost ~$0 in licensing and ~200 hours of render time. Quality approaches but does not match true native HD; however, it surpasses any broadcast or DVD release.
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine remains a high-water mark for science fiction television. Its serialized storytelling, complex characters, and gritty atmosphere have allowed it to age incredibly well narratively. Visually, however, the show is trapped in a bygone era.
Despite these flaws, the upscaled versions represented a massive leap forward in watchability on modern 4K and 1080p television screens. The Legacy of the 2020–2021 Upscale Movement The Technical Roadblock: Why DS9 Looks Bad on
Color correction algorithms applied alongside the upscale fixed the washed-out, muddy palette of the early 90s master tapes.
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (DS9) is frequently cited as the most mature, character-driven story in the Trek franchise. However, it suffers from a major visual drawback: unlike The Next Generation , DS9 was never fully remastered in High Definition (HD). As of 2026, there is no official HD release, leaving fans to rely on, or create, .
TLDR: DS9 upscale is here. Skip all the way to the bottom for instructions on where to get it. We've opted to release it in 1080p+ www.reddit.com·r/startrek How to Upscale Star Trek: Deep Space Nine | Extremetech
While the 2020–2021 upscales represent the best way to watch DS9 Season 1 today, the technology of that era was not perfect.