Amazon bets on AI start-up that lets you create shows
What's the story
Amazon has invested in San Francisco-based start-up Fable. The funding amount remains undisclosed. The investment will be used to develop Showrunner, an innovative service that allows users to create scenes or entire episodes of a TV show with just a few words. The tool can work from scratch or build on existing story worlds created by others. Fable built it with a Netflix-like look and calls it the "Netflix of AI."
Development timeline
Showrunner will be free to use initially
Showrunner was in a closed alpha test with 10,000 users for several months. Now, the company is opening it up for public use. Initially free, Fable plans to monetize the service by charging creators $10-$20 per month for credits that would let them create hundreds of TV scenes. However, viewing content generated by Showrunner will remain free and can be shared on platforms like YouTube.
Future prospects
Fable is in talks with Disney for licensing IP
Fable co-founder and CEO Edward Saatchi envisions Artificial Intelligence (AI) as a new medium of entertainment, similar to video games. He said using AI solely as a VFX tool is "a little sad." Saatchi also revealed that Fable is in talks with Disney and other Hollywood studios about licensing IP for the Showrunner platform.
User experience
Users want to insert themselves into the story worlds
The Showrunner system lets users insert themselves into a TV show's world, which has been popular among alpha testers. "People are interested in putting themselves and their friends into these stories," Saatchi said. "We didn't design it with that in mind. People want to be in fictional worlds and also want to tell stories about themselves."
AI technology
Fable's model previously generated 'South Park' episodes
Showrunner is powered by Fable's proprietary AI model, SHOW-2. The company had previously published a research paper on building the SHOW-1 model. As part of that, it released nine unauthorized episodes based on "South Park," which got over 80 million views. Saatchi said he was in touch with the South Park team, who were reassured that their IP wasn't being deployed commercially.
Content restrictions
Limitations of AI in entertainment space
Saatchi admitted that a major limitation of Showrunner and AI in entertainment is its unsuitability for long-form content. "Today AI can't sustain a story beyond one episode," he said, adding that it's best suited for episodic shows with characters largely resetting every episode. According to Saatchi, Fable's AI model has guardrails to prevent offensive or illegal behavior, including copyright infringement.