Netflix has for the first time used artificial intelligence (AI)-generated visual effects in one of its original TV shows. This is reported by BBC News, according to UNN.
Details
The streaming giant's co-CEO, Ted Sarandos, said that AI, which creates video and images based on prompts, was used to create a building collapse scene in the Argentine sci-fi show The Eternauts.
He added that the technology allowed the production team to complete the work faster and at a lower cost.
The use of generative AI is controversial in the entertainment industry due to concerns that it creates content using the work of others without their consent, and fears that it will replace human jobs
Sarandos noted that Netflix announced a 16% revenue growth to $11 billion (£8.25 billion) in the three months to the end of June compared to the same period last year. Profit increased from $2.1 billion to $3.1 billion.
The streaming firm stated that the better-than-expected performance was boosted by the success of the third and final season of the South Korean thriller "Squid Game," which has garnered 122 million views to date.
When asked about Netflix's use of AI, Sarandos said that the technology allowed productions with smaller budgets to use advanced visual effects.
According to him, the generative AI used in The Eternauts helped its production team complete a sequence showing a building collapse in Buenos Aires 10 times faster than if they had used traditional special effects tools.
The price simply would not have been feasible for a show on that budget. This sequence is actually the very first generative AI final shot to appear on screen in a Netflix original series or film. So the creators were thrilled with the result
AI was one of the key issues raised during the Hollywood strike in 2023.
During the three-month event, the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists union called for stricter regulation of AI use.
Recall
Netflix released a teaser for the third and final season of the popular streaming series "Squid Game".