Netflix Used AI to Generate a Scene on a TV Show: 'Thrilled'
Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos said on Thursday that the company used footage generated by AI in the 2025 Argentine science fiction series "El Eternauta" ("The Eternaut"), a show that follows survivors of a toxic snowfall. For the six-episode show, which arrived on Netflix on April 30, Netflix's visual effects artists tapped into AI to create a scene showing a building collapsing in Buenos Aires.
That visual effects sequence "was completed 10 times faster" than it would have with standard tools and workflows, Sarandos said in a conference call on Thursday after Netflix delivered its second quarter financial results. Netflix reported a strong quarter, with revenue of $11.08 billion, a 16% year-over-year increase, and $3.13 billion in profit.
Related: 'We're Going to Be Fighting for the Survival of Humanity': Netflix Co-Founder Donates $50 Million to Alma Mater for AI Initiative
According to Sarandos, "AI represents an incredible opportunity" for creators and presents a chance to make movies and TV shows "better, not just cheaper." The AI-generated scene in "El Eternauta" resonated with the show's audience, he said.
"This is real people doing real work with better tools," Sarandos said on the call. "The creators were thrilled with the result. We were thrilled with the result, and more importantly, the audience was thrilled with the result."
Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos. Photo by David Benito/FilmMagic
Netflix co-CEO Greg Peters also mentioned on the call that Netflix is incorporating AI into other aspects of its business, including personalization, search, and ads. Netflix introduced a new AI-powered search tool in May that allows users to find shows using prompts like, "I want something funny and upbeat."
Netflix also reported on Thursday that its subscribers watched over 95 billion hours worth of TV shows and movies through the platform in the first half of the year, a 1% increase from a year earlier. Non-English content made up one-third of overall viewing time.
Related: NASA Will Start Live Streaming on Netflix Soon. Here's What to Expect.
What is the difference between CGI and Generative AI?
So, how is AI use in shows different from CGI? Movies have been using CGI, or computer-generated imagery, for decades, starting with Alfred Hitchcock's 1958 film Vertigo. CGI is a tool that allows professionals to create content using computer software, giving them manual control over elements like textures and lighting.
CGI means that users create objects themselves. Generative AI, meanwhile, automatically generates objects based on a prompt. AI figures out on its own how to accomplish what is asked for in the prompt, making it less hands-on than CGI. This also means that the user has less control over an AI-generated output compared to CGI.
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