Google AI Invests $1 Million in Animaj to Create AI-Generated YouTube Content for Kids

Google Backs Animaj Studio Using AI to Make Content for Kids on YouTube

Google is investing in an artificial intelligence content studio focused on making videos for children on YouTube, part of an effort to seed the platform with high quality viewing for the site's youngest users. Google's AI Futures Fund invested $1 million into Animaj, an AI animation studio that makes videos for kids and drew more than 22 billion views to its channels last year, according to co-founder Sixte de Vauplane. Google is also giving Animaj early access to new versions of its Veo, Gemini and Imagen AI models that are not available to the public, plus support from the Google DeepMind and Google Labs teams to help the company tailor its AI tools and scale.

Google Invests $1 Million in Company That Makes AI YouTube Videos for Kids

Animaj AI-generates videos based on existing kids' IP. Its co-founder claims to share your concerns about slop. Google is funneling $1 million from its AI Futures Fund accelerator program into a company called Animaj, which makes AI-generated videos for kids, according to Bloomberg. Animaj will also reportedly get early access to Google’s Veo video models before they’re released to the public, and will be given special insights from DeepMind, Google's AI division. According to Animaj’s YouTube channel description, it “acquires and turns iconic Kids’ IPs into global franchises using an AI-driven, digital-first, and multi-platform approach.†Here’s an Animaj video from two years ago: But the way, according to a recent piece of analysis by the research firm MoffettNathanson, YouTube just quietly became the world’s largest media company last year, beating Disney's media division. An analysis of YouTube content last month by the New York Times found in 15-minutes of watching content recommended after a popular, non-AI piece of content, 40% of what materialized appeared to be AI-generated, often without being labeled as such. This content is largely incoherent mush, like goo being sluiced out of containers into the shapes of animals, and animals transforming into thingsâ€"like a rhino transforming into a quadcopter drone. Bloomberg cites Animaj co-founder Sixte de Vauplane as saying the company drew 22 billion video views to YouTube across all of its channels. “Google knows the problem and the issue of AI slop that is happening right now on YouTube,†he told Bloomberg. This cash injection from Google is relatively minuscule. Animaj has, according to Bloomberg, previously raised 100 million euros from the VC firm Left Lane Capital, and $85 million from HarbourView Equity Partners.