Netflix Goes ‘all In’ On Generative Ai As Entertainment Industry Remains Divided

As nan intermezo manufacture reckons pinch erstwhile and really to usage generative AI successful filmmaking, Netflix is leaning in. In its quarterly net study released connected Tuesday afternoon, Netflix wrote successful its letter to investors that it is “very good positioned to efficaciously leverage ongoing advances successful AI.”

Netflix isn’t readying to usage generative AI arsenic nan backbone of its contented but believes nan exertion has imaginable arsenic a instrumentality to make creatives much efficient.

“It takes a awesome creator to make thing great,” Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos said connected Tuesday’s net call. “AI tin springiness creatives amended devices to heighten their wide TV/movie acquisition for our members, but it doesn’t automatically make you a awesome storyteller if you’re not.”

Earlier this year, Netflix said it used generative AI successful last footage for nan first clip successful nan Argentine show “The Eternaut” to create a segment of a building collapsing. Since then, nan filmmakers down “Happy Gilmore 2” utilized generative AI to make characters look younger successful nan film’s opening scene, while nan producers of “Billionaires’ Bunker” utilized nan exertion arsenic a pre-production instrumentality to envision wardrobe and group design.

“We’re assured that AI is going to thief america and thief our imaginative partners show stories better, faster, and successful caller ways,” Sarandos said. “We’re each successful connected that, but we’re not chasing novelty for novelty’s liking here.”

AI has been a contentious topic successful nan intermezo industry, arsenic artists interest that LLM-powered devices that non-consensually utilized their activity arsenic training information person nan imaginable to negatively effect their jobs.

With Netflix arsenic a bellwether, it seems that studios are much apt to usage generative AI for typical effects alternatively than to switch nan domiciled of actors — moreover if an AI actor precocious caused an uproar among Hollywood actors, contempt not yet booking immoderate gigs (that we cognize of). These behind-the-scenes AI uses still person nan imaginable to effect ocular effects jobs, however.

These debates precocious escalated erstwhile ChatGPT-maker OpenAI unveiled its Sora 2 audio and video procreation model, which was released without guardrails that forestall users from generating videos of immoderate actors and humanities figures. Just this week, nan Hollywood waste and acquisition statement SAG-AFTRA and character Bryan Cranston urged OpenAI to institute stronger guardrails against deepfaking actors for illustration Cranston himself.

When an investor asked Sarandos astir nan effect of Sora connected Netflix, he said that it “starts to make sense” that contented creators could beryllium impacted, but he’s little worried astir nan movie and TV business — aliases truthful he tells investors.

“We’re not worried astir AI replacing creativity,” he said.

Netflix’s quarterly gross grew 17% year-over-year to $11.5 billion, though this fell beneath nan company’s forecast.