AI is turbocharging media production and democratizing creativity, but challenges persist for the industry, reveals new MIT Technology Review Insights research report

Digital media standards underlie every advance

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Feb. 13, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- A new report by MIT Technology Review Insights explores how emerging tech is remaking the media and entertainment industries—opening new business opportunities for the technologically savvy.

The report, "Designing the future of entertainment," is produced in partnership with Nokia and is based on in-depth interviews with media and entertainment executives, startup founders, industry analysts, and experts. Among the organizations represented are PwC, Seneca College, StoryFit, Databricks, Twyn, Enders Analysis, MIT Sloan School of Management, and Nokia.

"As the report concludes, media and entertainment brands are often in the tech vanguard, but they sometimes struggle to reorient their business models during periods of disruption," says Arvin Patel, chief licensing officer new segments for Nokia."They should embrace AI, forge new alliances, and think creatively about routes to monetization."

The findings are as follows:

• AI is turbocharging media production and democratizing the creative process, but it also poses substantial threats and challenges for the industry. Entertainment is moving from cautious experiments to wider-scale deployment of AI. So far, use cases include audience predictive analytics, virtual production, automating tasks like editing and captioning, and powering efficiency improvements in areas like animation and dubbing.
  
  
• Hardware, infrastructure, and connectivity will be crucial enablers of next-generation content. Key technical advances supporting new forms of content include edge and on-device processing improvements and the bandwidth and speed to enable multi-user and interactive experiences. Improved connectivity and device innovation will be key to delivering next-generation content and experiences.
  
  
• Digital media standards underlie every advance. Digital media technologies and standards are the soft infrastructure behind all digital entertainment, and they will be essential to more complex, interactive, and "live-ish" experiences of the future, including gaming, sports/esports, music, and the metaverse.
  
  
• Media and entertainment brands have often been tech vanguards, but they also struggle to reorient their business models during these transitions. They should forge new alliances, take an expansive view of their ecosystem to include non-traditional partners and think creatively about routes to monetization.

"The media and entertainment landscape is entering a transformative era where AI is no longer just a tool but a catalyst for creative reinvention and operational efficiency," says Laurel Ruma, global director of custom content for MIT Technology Review. "Success in this new era will require balancing experimentation with responsibility and embracing the evolving digital standards. AI should be seen as a partner in creativity, amplifying human ingenuity rather than replacing it."

Download the full report now.

For more information please contact:

Natasha Conteh
Head of Communications
MIT Technology Review Insights
natasha.conteh@technologyreview.com

About MIT Technology Review Insights

MIT Technology Review Insights is the custom publishing division of MIT Technology Review, the world's longest-running technology magazine, backed by the world's foremost technology institution—producing live events and research on the leading technology and business challenges of the day. Insights conducts qualitative and quantitative research and analysis in the U.S. and abroad and publishes a wide variety of content, including articles, reports, infographics, videos, and podcasts. And through its growing MIT Technology Review Global Insights Panel, Insights has unparalleled access to senior-level executives, innovators, and entrepreneurs worldwide for surveys and in-depth interviews.

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