Atti Abderrahim
Table of Contents
Following the surge of generative AI for text in early 2023, the field has now expanded to encompass voice, music, and video production. While AI video generation isn’t yet fully refined for the general public, the progress made so far is highly promising. Although creating a complete scene from a prompt may still lack fluidity, it’s now possible to effortlessly transform a photo into a natural-looking video lasting a few seconds or to generate an animated presentation. These are some of the main capabilities offered by most AI video creation tools. It’s safe to predict that advancements will be rapid, much like those seen with Midjourney or DALL-E (no more six-fingered hands!). Here, we have selected five of the best AI video generators available today.
1. Vidnoz AI: Tailored Educational Videos
Vidnoz AI Video is primarily geared toward professional video creation. This platform allows users to assemble various elements to compose videos, including avatars, backgrounds, titles, explanatory texts, images, voiceovers, language options, subtitles, background music, and embedded videos. You can either start from a template (with over 100 available) or begin from scratch. Users can even import a .PPT file or clone their voice!
The video can be as long as desired and can include multiple overlapping layers, allowing for creative transparency effects. The final file is available for free download in 720p MP4 format, but 1080p resolution requires a paid account. This tool is particularly suited for YouTube tutorials or corporate presentations.
One downside of Vidnoz is its occasional slow loading times. However, this is offset by the significant advantage of being available in French!
2. HeyGen: The AI Video Creation Powerhouse
Similar to Vidnoz, HeyGen is an AI video generator that allows users to create presentations using a library of avatars, backgrounds, ambient sounds, synchronized voices, texts, images, and titles. The video composition process is laid out on a timeline, just like any leading video editing software. This timeline-based approach makes it easy to move, duplicate, or delete video segments. HeyGen is particularly well-suited for corporate presentations, tutorials, and online courses.
Once satisfied with the video, users can download it in MP4 format. While HeyGen is a comprehensive tool, its many features and options make it somewhat challenging to master, especially since it is primarily available in English.
3. Invideo AI: Perfect for Social Media
With Invideo, creating a AI Video has never been easier: input a prompt, click, and go! For more precise results, the AI asks a few questions: What is the target audience? What should the look and feel be? What platform is the video for? Invideo is primarily designed for generating videos for social media platforms like YouTube and Instagram Reels.
While the images themselves are not generated by the AI, they are sourced from stock image libraries (iStock, Storyblocks, etc.) and are combined with a voiceover that matches the visuals. Each part of the video can be edited separately, as can the accompanying text.
One perk is that some sections of the interface are in French, with hopes for further multilingual development!
4. Luma Dream Machine: Create and Animate with Ease!
Luma Dream Machine is straightforward: it offers AI Video generation from a prompt or an image, without the need for complex settings, parameters, or uploads. There’s no way to go wrong, as the input field is unmistakable. Simply provide a prompt, and the video is created. However, this can take time sometimes several minutes, which is standard for most competitors. The process for using an image is the same: upload the image, optionally add a prompt, and Luma will turn it into a video.
The free version offers 30 generations per month, but these videos come with a “Luma” watermark and are not for commercial use. The results from prompts are generally decent—perhaps not professional-grade, but fun for casual use. Videos generated from images tend to be more impressive, although their five-second duration limits professional applications.
5. Pika: Animation and Audio Effects
Pika allows users to create short AI Video sequences from a text prompt, image, or video. Similar to other tools, results are not always perfect when generating from a prompt (expect some oddities like seven-legged kittens!), but the output is smoother when based on an image or video.
If you upload a photo of a person, Pika offers a “Lip Sync” feature, available only with paid versions. Users can input a phrase as a prompt, and Pika will animate the image to make the character speak. Unfortunately, this feature is currently limited to English voices. However, users can upload their own .MP3 file to animate the photo. The free version of Pika provides a three-second video where, for example, a person smiles and blinks naturally. You can then edit specific areas of the video, change the format, or add sound effects via a prompt. To extend the video duration, access premium features, or remove the watermark, a subscription starting at $8 per month is required.
Conclusion
These five AI video generators showcase the rapid evolution of technology in this area. While each tool has its strengths and weaknesses, they offer diverse options for creating engaging and dynamic video content, whether for professional or personal use. As AI continues to advance, we can expect even more innovative and refined tools to emerge, making video creation more accessible and powerful than ever before.
