Artificial intelligence can contribute to the growth of the virtual manufacturing sector

Artificial intelligence tools can help filmmakers overcome some of the current limitations in virtual production, contributing to the expected recovery of the sector.

This could mean significant growth. According to Fortune Business Insights’ latest forecast, the global virtual manufacturing market size was valued at $2.98 billion in 2023 and is expected to grow to $3.38 billion by 2024 and $9.62 billion by 2032.

The intersection of artificial intelligence and virtual manufacturing was the topic of last week’s AI on the Lot event in Los Angeles, where Synapse Virtual Production CEO Justin Diener announced that his company is already using artificial intelligence in various parts of its virtual production pipelines, alongside the tools it currently uses in production. For example, AI tools such as Midjourney and Dall-E are included in the development process.

Kathryn Brillhart, virtual production manager for Amazon Prime Video’s “Fallout” series, suggested that overall, generation AI-enabled tools are not yet ready for large-scale virtual production projects, although it is currently using AI for people with small and mid-level budgets, especially in helping democratize visual effects.

However, education needs to be addressed, as evidenced by the interest in artificial intelligence in the plot, which was sold out to 850 registered people. Participants included representatives from Hollywood studios, technology developers and filmmakers – both established and hoping to be part of the next generation of storytellers.

In a recent National Research Group survey of creative professionals, 72% said they believe people in creative fields should be educated about AI tools, but in the same survey, only 14% of people who expect generation AI to have an impact their industry, said they found that there was a lot of training material available.

While developers largely agree that more training opportunities are needed, the effort has begun. For example, Diener said Synapse has engaged in educational activities on virtual production and artificial intelligence with organizations such as the American Society of Cinematographers, DGA and the Visual Effects Society. Synapse has also partnered with the Rochester Institute of Technology on a virtual manufacturing training program.

Meanwhile, additional technologies can help improve virtual production. German visualization technology developer Chaos recently revealed that it is working on a new type of renderer that uses ray tracing – something that lab director Christopher Nichols says is the “most accurate” tool for representing lighting and cameras. He believes this could result in a less costly, more efficient and higher quality option for virtual production volumes.

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