Sony Pictures: Using artificial intelligence to make movies can save a lot of money

Yesterday, Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) CEO Tony Vinciquerra said the company will use artificial intelligence to reduce the cost of film production.

He noted that Sony Pictures Entertainment is exploring "using artificial intelligence to make movies and TV series in a more efficient way."

When discussing the use of artificial intelligence, Vinciquerra was outspoken about the technology, especially its economic benefits. "We attach great importance to the application of artificial intelligence. The biggest problem with film production at the moment is the high cost," Vinciquerra said at an investor event in Japan. "We hope to find ways to make film and TV production more efficient through artificial intelligence."

This is the strongest support for artificial intelligence by film industry leaders to date.

Vinciquerra is also aware that his views may provoke a strong reaction from the creative industry.

He mentioned, "Last year we had an eight-month strike over AI," and added in response to analysts' questions that current and future industry negotiations will once again revolve around AI.

Those talks will determine how far Vinciquerra and his peers can go in the field of artificial intelligence. “Last year’s strike and the upcoming negotiations will define what we can do in terms of artificial intelligence,” Vinciquerra added.

Despite the attention, Vinciquerra did not respond directly to questions about Sony's potential acquisition of Paramount. He did make some cryptic comments when asked about M&A: "We are looking for investments that complement our strategy," he said. "We are not going to stray from the strategy that has proven to be extremely successful over the past few years."

Sony Pictures Entertainment has adopted a clear strategy in the streaming wars, often licensing the rights to its films to Netflix after they are released.

"We will not make investments that are inconsistent with our current strategy, which is to increase our intellectual property, products and inventory of salable content," Vinciquerra stressed. "No matter what you read in the media, we will not get involved in other businesses, we will not enter the field of comprehensive entertainment streaming services, and we will not operate other businesses that are beyond the scope of our determined strategy."

Although pessimistic about Paramount's streaming service Paramount+, Vinciquerra has not completely given up on the streaming business.

He mentioned during the Q&A session that “Crunchyroll (anime streaming platform) will be a major driver of growth for Sony Pictures Entertainment in the coming years.”