On Tuesday, that other video hosting site, Vimeo, said it will introduce a new suite of generative AI features into its video editing tools for paying users with the aim of shortening the scripting and editing process from hours to minutes. Vimeo has steadily backed off from challenging YouTube for amateur content in favour of corporate customers. Now, the platform wants to use AI to drastically cut the number of hours executives spend making video statements to their staff.
Vimeo has stuck the ChatGPT API into its video suite that lets users generate scripts that can be specified to fit a specific tone or length. Users can then read that AI-generated script off a new built-in teleprompter with customisable pace and font size. Vimeo said its new prompt-based, automatic editing should be able to remove all those awkward pauses “ums” and “uhs” and restitch those clips into a workable video simply by recognising parts of the video transcript. Gizmodo did not get to test this feature, though Alkarmi said the edits will look and sound better and smoother than simple jump cuts in between the missing words.
The new feature set is releasing July 17 and is only available for those users who pay the $US40 a month, or $US240 a year for a “Standard” plan or above. When generating scripts, users are offered a few tone presets, including “Formal,” “Inspiring,” or “Funny.” Of course, just because a user asks the AI to create a script timed for five minutes, doesn’t mean the speaker is going to keep that pace. Vimeo’s Chief Product Officer Ashraf Alkarmi told Gizmodo that precise timing will come down to who’s speaking, but users can manually control how fast the teleprompter’s text scrolls.
“We took a flow that takes hours that has a lot of customer pain points, and we added AI — not just to add AI — but to use AI to help customers’ lives,” Alkarmi said.
The company said this new AI integration should quicken the pace at whichii users can create videos, though most applications are for the enterprise end of its operations. Alkarmi said its works especially for those who have “no prior production experience.”
That has been the routine promise of the bevy of apps and even drive-thrus that have recently released AI chatbot features. Vimeo’s feature suite far less intensive than other editing software’s AI integration, but the ease of use for even the most tech-illiterate users seems to be the point. Earlier this month, Engadget first reported Vimeo was ending support for TV apps starting June 27, calling themselves an “all-in-one video experience platform.” So if your company’s higher ups come out with a new video that feels just a bit stiff, you might have an idea where it came from.