AI streaming is becoming common in China, regardless of whether audiences are interested in it or not.

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      iQiyi aims for AI to eventually produce the majority of its content and is already taking steps in that direction.

      China's counterpart to Netflix, iQiyi, is placing one of the most significant bets in streaming history. The company is looking to have AI generate most of its films and shows in the near future and is currently restructuring its 16-year-old business to facilitate this transition.

      At its yearly content event in Beijing, founder and CEO Gong Yu revealed that iQiyi is transforming its well-known streaming platform into a social media hub centered on AI-generated content.

      In conjunction with this announcement, the company introduced Nadou Pro, an AI tool that, as per the company, can manage nearly every component of filmmaking, from scriptwriting and storyboarding to the final output.

      Can AI truly rescue a faltering streaming giant?

      As reported by Bloomberg, iQiyi has been experiencing revenue loss for several years due to the rise of short-form video platforms like Douyin, which have taken away its viewer base. The company's revenue is projected to drop by 13% in the first quarter alone. Gong views AI as the solution, making his intentions clear: “It’s once in a decade,” he stated. “We have to take the tide as it comes.”

      Nadou

      The company plans to launch a commercially viable AI-generated film as soon as this summer. To incentivize independent creators, it will offer an additional 20% share of ad and membership revenue to those producing AI content on the platform. Additionally, it is introducing a separate app that will allow users to interact with characters from its shows.

      What about content made by professionals?

      Gong assured that investments in professionally produced shows will continue, though he acknowledged that such content will gradually decrease as a portion of the platform. Clearly, AI-generated content is the main focus.

      I don’t oppose the increase of AI content online, but I do have concerns when it starts to replace human talent. AI has become the latest trend that everyone wants to capitalize on, and iQiyi has joined the ranks of companies embracing it.

      Unsplash

      The more I observe this trend, the more I suspect that AI is heading toward being yet another bubble. It's noteworthy that even a footwear company shifted its focus from making shoes to developing AI infrastructure, leading to a nearly 600% increase in its stock.

      It will be interesting to see which companies manage to survive this AI trend once the bubble bursts and the aftermath is cleared.

      Rachit is an experienced tech journalist with more than seven years of expertise in covering the consumer technology sector.

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