Latest news with #visualcontent
Forbes
a day ago
- Business
- Forbes
Visual AI Tools: The Future Of Marketing Content Creation
Bernard May is the CEO of National Positions, a 5-time Inc. 500 company, award-winning marketing agency and Google Premier Partner. It's hard to grasp that it's been only three years since the names that would come to define the AI landscape surged into the public consciousness, setting in motion a wave of possibilities we're still riding today. Midjourney, ChatGPT and Kaiber blew the doors off the marketing world, introducing all of us to a new era of productivity and creativity. When it comes to marketing, visual content is the holy grail, and with good reason. In 2025, 'content' is shorthand for video, product images, ad clips, user-generated content and more—anything and everything that captures the eyes, hearts and minds of your next potential customer. With limited time, assets and budgets, marketing teams are under pressure to maximize output with minimal input. That's where visual AI tools come in. The fact of the matter is this: Marketers who are not at least willing to experiment with everything AI has to offer (and how it applies to their specific marketing roles) could be doomed to extinction in the next decade or so. I'm not trying to scare anyone, but I am imploring you to stay up to date with every tool at your disposal to stay relevant. Here's what I've found after experimenting, testing and using nearly every visual AI tool on the market. The workflows I've included below are the ones I keep coming back to. I have zero affiliation with any tools mentioned, but they've each saved me hundreds of hours compared to traditional workflows. Image Creation AI that's laser-focused on image generation is, in my opinion, hands down the best for customization and flexibility. It's my go-to for creating custom images, stock-like assets or just finding visual inspiration. I've used Midjourney for years. You can enter your prompt, choose aspect ratios, set camera angles, provide visual references for consistency and even make edits after creation. I'll admit that I was a Gemini skeptic when it launched. That said, when it comes to quick and quality image generation, it has passed every test I've run. I've found Gemini to be fast and accurate with prompts, and—since you're working within a large language model—you can refine visuals right in the chat thread, which is a huge time saver. Video Creation Now over to video. If you're ready to have your mind blown, go and start experimenting. I've used AI for everything from creating drone shots of client locations to animating team photos for promotional clips. I've also started using AI more for B-roll and product image videos—like making a model 'walk down the street' wearing a featured outfit. The results are stunning. The Achilles' heel for many AI video creation tools is still hands—they can morph, blur and usually fail. So as long as hands stay in pockets, it's worth testing. Runway is a tool where it's getting hard to distinguish AI from reality, especially with people. Eye movement, mouths, hands—it nails them 95% of the time in my experience. You can start from scratch or provide image references and let it go. My best results have come from the latter. Kaiber's Superstudio has been my budget-friendly backup for generating video assets from images and prompts on the fly. Its sandbox-style user experience can be finicky, but the results are solid. The first time I uploaded a client product image and asked for a 360-degree rotation around the product, it delivered exactly that—I was shocked. Voice AI This one's a bit of a cheat, but if you plan to create AI avatar versions of your team, the voice has to be on point. If this isn't your thing, skip it. But if you're going the avatar route, don't skip this step. I've used ElevenLabs for this. It lets you clone your voice with surprising accuracy for use in scripted video platforms. It's getting better at matching vocal tone and cadence, so scripts sound fluid and natural. Getting Real About AI This is the fact of the matter: The only way you're going to find the AI tools that will fill the gaps in your marketing is to test everything you find with an open mind. There is no one-size-fits-all (just like with anything else). Some are simpler to use or have better qualities than others. But the needs of a beauty brand, for example, are not going to be the same as those of an auto dealership. So the only way to find the right fit for you is to test fast and keep the winners. Start Creating You can see I rarely rely on a single tool for everything. I mix and match based on the project and the time I have. But here's the point: We've hit a moment in history where if you can think it, you can create it. 'Limited assets' and 'no production team' are no longer valid excuses. I'll end with this: I highly encourage you to think beyond the examples I shared above. There are emerging AI tools gracing social media feeds every day, and you shouldn't sleep on any of them. You never know when you're going to find a new AI diamond in the rough. Keep creating and stay curious. Forbes Agency Council is an invitation-only community for executives in successful public relations, media strategy, creative and advertising agencies. Do I qualify?
TechCrunch
03-07-2025
- TechCrunch
Everything you need to know about Flashes, the Bluesky-based Instagram alternative
Flashes this year launched an Instagram alternative built on top of the Bluesky social network. Now available on the App Store, the app offers a different way to browse the visual posts on Bluesky. Instead of viewing them in a timeline-like feed, similar to X, the app draws inspiration from photo-based social networks, like Instagram. What you can post The app, built by Berlin-based developer Sebastian Vogelsang, runs on the same underlying protocol that powers Bluesky, the AT Protocol (or atproto for short). That means it will have the same requirements around posting images and videos as you'd find on Bluesky directly. Originally, that meant support for posting up to four images and videos of one minute in length, but as of the Bluesky version 1.99 update released on March 10, users have been able to upload videos up to 3 minutes in length. Image Credits:Flashes How Flashes is like Instagram — and how it's different Flashes is somewhat similar to Instagram, as it offers a scrollable feed of photos and videos, user profiles, and even photo filters to enhance your images when posting. Instead of having to start your network from scratch, Flashes' users are immediately tapped into the wider Bluesky community, which now has over 37 million users. Even if not all of Bluesky's users are on Flashes, their images and videos will be displayed in the app, as it essentially filters the Bluesky feed for visual content. When you post on Flashes, it creates a post that appears on Bluesky as well. (For that reason, you may want to make a secondary Bluesky account if you want to keep the two networks separate.) Image Credits:Flashes In addition, the app lets you browse your own Bluesky feeds and choose from Bluesky's over 50,000 custom feeds, including those that focus on particular topics — like art, birds, gardening, or cat pics, for example — or those dedicated to specific formats, like Bluesky's video feed. As you browse through the posts in Flashes, you can like, repost, and reply to them, just as you could on Bluesky itself. Those interactions will also appear in Bluesky's app, while Bluesky users' interactions will show up in Flashes. Photographers looking for a place to showcase their work will appreciate Flashes' 'Portfolio' feature. To toggle this setting on, you'll head to the 'Advanced' tab on your user profile, then tap on 'Flashes profile.' Here, there will be an option to enable Portfolio, which lets you curate which images should appear on your Flashes user profile. You can also customize your user profile further by opting to show or hide likes, lists, and feeds, or using other media filtering options. How to get started To use Flashes, you'll first need a Bluesky account. If you already have one, you can sign in with those credentials. If not, you can choose to sign up for a Bluesky account from within the Flashes app. The app defaults to setting up your account on the main Bluesky server, but more technical users can opt to set up a custom hosting provider instead. To create your account, you'll need to provide an email address, password, and date of birth, then accept the terms of use, which means you agree to Bluesky's Community Guidelines and Terms. Once signed in, you can immediately start browsing the images and videos shared on your Bluesky timeline or any other Bluesky feed, or post your own media. A subscription may be coming Vogelsang hopes that Flashes will help pull in more users to the Bluesky community, including those who aren't as interested in a Twitter/X-like experience. Instead, the app appeals more to people looking for open alternatives to Meta's Instagram. It's not the only app building in this space, however. Another app working on similar experiences is Pinksky. Meanwhile, users of Mastodon's social network may prefer Pixelfed, which uses the fediverse's ActivityPub protocol under the hood instead of Bluesky's atproto. Image Credits:Flashes Over time, Vogelsang wants to add more features to Flashes, like push notifications, support for multiple accounts, bookmarks, and more editing options. Plans to add subscriptions with premium features are in the works, which would help fund Android and web development. These paid tiers could also provide premium access to Vogelsang's third-party Bluesky app, Skeets, and his video-focused app, Bluescreen. Other planned features include iPad layout improvements, support for longer videos, posts that are only visible for a limited time (like Stories), albums, and batched image transfer from other platforms. Eventually, the developer would like to evolve Flashes to be its own AT Protocol-based platform, while still being compatible with Bluesky's network. The app is a free download from the App Store and requires iOS 17 or higher to run.
Yahoo
02-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Q1 Rundown: Getty Images (NYSE:GETY) Vs Other Digital Media & Content Platforms Stocks
As the Q1 earnings season comes to a close, it's time to take stock of this quarter's best and worst performers in the digital media & content platforms industry, including Getty Images (NYSE:GETY) and its peers. AI-driven content creation, personalized media experiences, and digital advertising are evolving, which could benefit companies investing in these themes. For example, companies with a portfolio of licensed visual content or platforms facilitating direct monetization models could see increased demand for years. On the other hand, headwinds include growing regulatory scrutiny on AI-generated content, with many publishers balking at anything that gets no human oversight. Additional areas to navigate include the phasing out of third-party cookies, which could make traditional ways of tracking the online behavior of consumers (a secret sauce in digital marketing) much less effective. The 7 digital media & content platforms stocks we track reported a slower Q1. As a group, revenues missed analysts' consensus estimates by 3.5% while next quarter's revenue guidance was 1.2% below. While some digital media & content platforms stocks have fared somewhat better than others, they have collectively declined. On average, share prices are down 2.5% since the latest earnings results. With a vast library of over 562 million visual assets documenting everything from breaking news to iconic historical moments, Getty Images (NYSE:GETY) is a global visual content marketplace that licenses photos, videos, illustrations, and music to businesses, media outlets, and creative professionals. Getty Images reported revenues of $224.1 million, flat year on year. This print fell short of analysts' expectations by 4.7%. Overall, it was a softer quarter for the company with a significant miss of analysts' EPS estimates. 'Results in the first quarter were consistent with our expectations, with growth highlighted by gains across our subscription business, and continued customer value delivered through our offerings,' said Craig Peters, Chief Executive Officer for Getty Images. Getty Images delivered the weakest full-year guidance update of the whole group. Unsurprisingly, the stock is down 13.4% since reporting and currently trades at $1.77. Read our full report on Getty Images here, it's free. Founded in 2013 as a champion for content creator rights and free expression, Rumble (NASDAQ:RUM) is a video sharing platform that positions itself as a free speech alternative to mainstream platforms, offering creators more favorable revenue-sharing opportunities. Rumble reported revenues of $23.71 million, up 33.7% year on year, outperforming analysts' expectations by 4.1%. The business had a stunning quarter with a solid beat of analysts' EPS estimates. Rumble scored the biggest analyst estimates beat and fastest revenue growth among its peers. The market seems happy with the results as the stock is up 16.7% since reporting. It currently trades at $9.07. Is now the time to buy Rumble? Access our full analysis of the earnings results here, it's free. Originally known as InterActiveCorp and built through Barry Diller's strategic acquisitions since the 1990s, IAC (NASDAQ:IAC) operates a portfolio of category-leading digital businesses including Dotdash Meredith, Angi, and focusing on digital publishing, home services, and caregiving platforms. IAC reported revenues of $570.5 million, down 8.6% year on year, falling short of analysts' expectations by 29.5%. It was a disappointing quarter as it posted a significant miss of analysts' EPS estimates. IAC delivered the weakest performance against analyst estimates and slowest revenue growth in the group. Interestingly, the stock is up 10.9% since the results and currently trades at $39.23. Read our full analysis of IAC's results here. Pioneering a vertical-scrolling format optimized for mobile devices, WEBTOON Entertainment (NASDAQ:WBTN) operates a global platform where creators publish serialized web-comics and web-novels that users can read in bite-sized episodes. WEBTOON reported revenues of $325.7 million, flat year on year. This number missed analysts' expectations by 1%. It was a softer quarter as it also produced a significant miss of analysts' EPS estimates and revenue guidance for next quarter slightly missing analysts' expectations. The stock is down 7.2% since reporting and currently trades at $9.16. Read our full, actionable report on WEBTOON here, it's free. Originally a pioneering technology publisher founded in 1927 that became famous for PC Magazine, Ziff Davis (NASDAQ:ZD) operates a portfolio of digital media brands and subscription services across technology, shopping, gaming, healthcare, and cybersecurity markets. Ziff Davis reported revenues of $328.6 million, up 4.5% year on year. This result topped analysts' expectations by 1.4%. Taking a step back, it was a slower quarter as it recorded a significant miss of analysts' EPS estimates and full-year EPS guidance in line with analysts' estimates. The stock is down 1.8% since reporting and currently trades at $31.79. Read our full, actionable report on Ziff Davis here, it's free. Thanks to the Fed's series of rate hikes in 2022 and 2023, inflation has cooled significantly from its post-pandemic highs, drawing closer to the 2% goal. This disinflation has occurred without severely impacting economic growth, suggesting the success of a soft landing. The stock market thrived in 2024, spurred by recent rate cuts (0.5% in September and 0.25% in November), and a notable surge followed Donald Trump's presidential election win in November, propelling indices to historic highs. Nonetheless, the outlook for 2025 remains clouded by potential trade policy changes and corporate tax discussions, which could impact business confidence and growth. The path forward holds both optimism and caution as new policies take shape. Want to invest in winners with rock-solid fundamentals? Check out our Top 5 Quality Compounder Stocks and add them to your watchlist. These companies are poised for growth regardless of the political or macroeconomic climate. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Forbes
23-06-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Managing Visual Media Risk In A GenAI World
Tal Lev-Ami is cofounder and CTO of image and video platform Cloudinary, which is trusted by more than 10,000 brands and 2 million users. Over the past two decades, there has been a shift in how people prefer to consume information online, with visual content—images, video and interactive media—having gradually overtaken text-heavy formats. Research from Intergralads found that user-generated video alone is forecast to account for 82% of all consumer internet traffic in 2025. As engaging and helpful as all this visual content is for consumers, it creates lots of technical challenges for those managing and delivering it. Brands today need to produce, retouch, share, moderate, publish and otherwise manage huge quantities of visual imagery across more channels than ever, making what was once a manageable nice-to-have a tech-powered, business-critical endeavor. Inevitably, brands are relying on AI to automate the repetitive yet critical tasks required to ensure visual content looks great and performs well across every device. GenAI, in particular, is proving invaluable for a range of tasks like scaling content creation and personalizing customer experiences. Doing so brings enormous benefits, but it also poses potential risks. According to Gartner's 2024 Hype Cycle for Emerging Technologies, GenAI has moved beyond what it calls the "Peak of Inflated Expectations." That's not to say we shouldn't still be inspired and ambitious about applying the technology; quite the opposite. It means we're entering a more practical phase, where the reality of execution means having to contend with the less shiny aspects of GenAI like governance, compliance and risk management. After more than a decade into our journey with AI technologies, we've learned a lot about evaluating risk. Without question, companies that manage visual media at scale with GenAI are particularly exposed to errors, biases and compliance issues and need to have risk frameworks in place. The simple framework below is designed to help evaluate the risk of using GenAI to transform a specific image and video asset or a collection of them. • Scope: How many people are likely to see the asset? How many systems will be impacted? • Centrality: This refers to the centrality of the asset to the user experience. Does it appear above or below the fold? Is this the most prominent/large asset or "eye candy" at the edge or corner? • Probability Versus Severity Of Failure: Does the asset look a little bad or is there a risk it could harm the brand? For example, say somebody resizes the image and it distorts the aspect ratio—that's a little bad. But if the AI image is labeled in a racist or inappropriate way, that harms the brand. • Fidelity Versus Appeal: Fidelity focuses on accurately representing the original product. It's especially important when customers need to assess details like texture, color, fit or quality—common in categories like fashion and apparel—where accurate images help reduce returns. Appeal, on the other hand, emphasizes enhancing images to make them more eye-catching or emotionally engaging. This is often prioritized in social media, lifestyle branding and creative campaigns where the goal is to attract attention and drive engagement. Those last two trade-offs are especially tricky to optimize at scale without putting automation and clear rules in place for humans and AI to follow, in line with risk tolerance. Every type and size of business will have different rules. News organizations, for example, prioritize visual asset fidelity over appeal. By contrast, a luxury brand would likely prioritize appeal. A large enterprise that faces high scrutiny and regulatory risks would need strict human oversight of any AI automation. A smaller, more maverick business might decide to take more risks and "apologize later." To manage GenAI risks at scale, clear policies must be established that define where and how your organization will (and won't) use AI. It's equally important to establish the role of human oversight to mitigate risk and meet brand and regulatory guidelines. For instance, GenAI can assist in red-flagging obviously harmful user-generated content while escalating more nuanced decisions to human moderators. Similarly, GenAI can accelerate UI/UX workflows by generating initial layout concepts, which designers can then refine to meet aesthetic and usability standards. These should be reviewed on a regular basis (quarterly, for example) as things change very fast in the AI world. AI models that perform well in controlled demos may falter when exposed to real-world complexity and high-volume traffic. That's why before moving to production, companies should rigorously test GenAI systems in their own environments, using real data and scenarios to uncover hidden weaknesses. Incorporating A/B testing and shadow deployments can help identify unintended consequences early, before they impact users or brand trust. Using AI provenance tools like watermarking and metadata tracking can help maintain accountability. To manage compliance, it's important to stay ahead of evolving regulations on AI-generated content. Optimizing the workflow with GenAI is essential for harnessing visual media's many benefits, but doing this at scale safely requires proactive risk management. By aligning AI adoption with structured risk frameworks, companies can innovate at hyperscale while maintaining trust and quality. Businesses that scale AI responsibly, treating risk assessment as a core strategy rather than an afterthought, definitely stand to gain the best return on their visual media spend. Forbes Technology Council is an invitation-only community for world-class CIOs, CTOs and technology executives. Do I qualify?
CNA
17-06-2025
- Entertainment
- CNA
All new Facebook videos to be classified as Reels soon, Meta says
All new videos uploaded on Facebook will soon be classified as Reels, simplifying how users publish visual content, social media giant Meta Platforms said on Tuesday. The Instagram parent said Reels on Facebook will no longer have length or format restrictions, and include all types of video content — short, long and live. Previously uploaded video content will remain as such on the platform while videos posted after the change will be classified as Reels. The company will also rename the Video tab as Reels tab. As part of the update, users will be prompted to confirm their audience setting or select a new one if their feed posts and Reels currently have different settings. The update will also give users access to more creative tools. Meta said it will gradually roll out these changes globally to profiles and pages over the coming months.
