TikTok Launches AI Alive: A Groundbreaking Yet Glitchy Image-to-Video Tool

TikTok launches TikTok AI Alive, a new image-to-video tool | TechCrunch

TikTok is launching its first image-to-video AI feature, the company announced on Tuesday. The new feature is called "TikTok AI Alive" and allows users to turn static photos into videos within TikTok Stories. The feature is only accessible via TikTok's Story Camera and uses AI to create short-form videos with "movement, atmospheric and creative effects," TikTok says. For instance, if your static photo features a sky, clouds, and the ocean, TikTok could turn the photo into a video where the sky gradually shifts hues, the clouds start to drift, and you hear the sound of waves crashing. Or, you could animate a group selfie that highlights gestures and expressions. The launch of the new image-to-video features comes a few years after TikTok introduced an in-app text-to-image AI generator. While both Instagram and Snapchat also offer text-to-image AI features for creators, TikTok is now taking a step further by offering its users the ability to create videos from images. It's worth noting that Snapchat has said it will soon allow creators to generate AI videos from images. AI Alive stories will have an AI-generated label to notify users that the content was created with AI. Plus, this content will have C2PA metadata embedded, which is a technical standard that helps others identify that the video is AI-generated, even if it's downloaded and shared beyond TikTok. "We are always building with safety in mind, and the same goes for our AI innovations," TikTok said in a blog post. "As this technology enables new forms of creative expression, it undergoes multiple trust and safety checks to protect our community. To help prevent people from creating content that violates our policies, moderation technology reviews the uploaded photo and written AI generation prompt as well as the AI Alive video before it's shown to the creator." TikTok notes that people can report videos that they think break the app's rules, and that the app conducts a final safety check once a creator shares an AI Alive story. Creators can create an AI Alive video by opening the Story Camera and tapping the blue plus button on the top of the Inbox page or Profile page. From there, you can choose a photo from your Story Album. You will then see the AI Alive icon on the right side toolbar on the photo edit page.

I Tried TikTok's New AI Video Generator. It's All Kinds of Glitchy

AI is encroaching on a new area of social media. TikTok on Tuesday announced the new feature AI Alive, which lets creators animate photos for TikTok stories into short video clips using generative AI. The feature is rolling out in the US this week. My experience using AI Alive has been a mixed bag. The first time I tried it, it took nearly 5 minutes to generate a video, and for 2 of those minutes, it kept saying there were only 10 seconds left. The results ranged from acceptable, at best, to downright horrifying. TikTok also seemed to struggle with object permanence. These are a couple of the videos I made with the new TikTok feature. In the first, I wanted to add a dog to my picture of sunny Tybee Island in Georgia, but TikTok took the wheel and decided to make the dog fly in from nowhere, instead of using my directive in the prompt to have the dog run in on the ground. In another video, AI replaced existing elements, unprompted. My original poster of a ram became something of a horror scene, with the now rather scary-looking beast leaping through the page -- I'd simply instructed AI Alive to animate the existing ram and have it jump off the poster. And I don't know why TikTok's feature ultimately decided to replace the original poster with weird AI gibberish. That was unprompted, and the final frame of the video kind of reminds me of an ad for a scary-clown movie. There were lots of weird glitches throughout my testing. I think I could've fixed some of those blunders with edited prompts, but you get only five attempts per day, a disappointingly low limit. The AI video model powering the new feature was built by TikTok, with certain elements supported by open-source technology. Given that TikTok is first and foremost a social media company, not an AI developer, it makes sense that it's taking advantage of some open-source AI tech. TikTok's AI Alive videos will automatically have a label added to them denoting that they're AI-generated, and as part of TikTok's partnership with the Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity (C2PA), similar markers will be embedded in the metadata of the videos. Though the feature itself is meh, this announcement tells us about what TikTok imagines as its future with AI. Many social media platforms have undergone an AI makeover over the past few years, none more so than Instagram and Facebook with Meta AI. TikTok has launched some AI features, including avatars for professional creators and behind-the-scenes AI tools for marketers. But this is its first general-purpose and widely available AI feature. It could mark the beginning of TikTok's AI era. For a company that's been mired in privacy concerns for years, fueling federal legislation, a Supreme Court case and multiple presidential stays to keep the app online in the US, TikTok's choice to dive deeper into AI is noteworthy. Generative AI has its own myriad of privacy concerns, and for image and video generators, people often raise questions about how the models are trained and how they process users' data. TikTok's privacy policy doesn't have a dedicated AI section, but it says TikTok can use information you give it to "improve and develop the platform and conduct product development," which could include AI models. I'm struggling to imagine an essential use case for this feature for TikTok creators, but it's probably worth playing around to see if it could work for you. If you want to try it out, here's how to get going: Writing a good AI prompt is the key to success. This is true for all AI image and video generators, but in my testing, TikTok's AI seems especially sensitive. When you're writing your prompt, put the most important elements at the beginning. You can check out our full guide to writing effective AI image prompts for more tips.

You can make a photo come alive with TikTok's new AI tool - here's how

That photo you'd like to share on TikTok seems a bit blah. If only there were some way you could make it more exciting, dynamic, and visual. You can, thanks to a new AI-powered image-to-video feature known as AI Alive. Unveiled on Tuesday, AI Alive creates a brief video clip out of any still photo. Available within TikTok's Story Camera, the AI tool taps into AI to automatically add the right prompt and transform your photo. After the video is generated, you can preview it and then post it to your story for anyone on TikTok to watch. Also: The best AI image generators Gemini, ChatGPT, Midjourney, and more "As TikTok's first AI-driven image-to-video creation feature, AI Alive places creativity control directly in your hands," TikTok said in a news release. "Imagine capturing a serene sunset photo and effortlessly turning it into a cinematic clip: the sky gradually shifts hues, clouds drift lazily, and ambient sounds of waves crashing in the distance bring the scene to life. Or take a group selfie and bring it to life as a lively, animated memory that highlights the subtle gestures and expressions of friends or family. AI Alive unlocks these creative possibilities, taking everyday content to the next level." I tried AI Alive with a few different photos to see how it worked. Also: I test a lot of AI coding tools, and this stunning new OpenAI release just saved me days of work With a selfie, the animation showed my eyes opening and closing. In a photo of a turtle, the animation showed him opening and closing his mouth, displaying his tiny teeth. I also transformed a photo of my favorite subject, namely my cat, Mr. Giggles. Here, the AI made his eyes blink in a cute feline way. AI Alive is a fun and creative tool that cleverly uses AI to spice up your photos. There's only one drawback: TikTok limits you to five per day, so be careful how often you use it. Get the morning's top stories in your inbox each day with our Tech Today newsletter.

TikTok just added an AI-powered image-to-video feature and it did some weird things to my cat

TikTok hasn't shoved generative AI features into every corner of its app the way Meta has with Instagram, but the company has still experimented with the tech in some interesting -- if -- ways. Now, TikTok is introducing a new AI-powered feature that feels even more meme-worthy. It's called and it allows users to create short, stylized video clips from a static image. Right now, the feature only exists for TikTok's Stories feature, so it's meant for more ephemeral sharing than what you might typically post on the app. You start with a still image Stories post (accessed from the app's inbox) and choose the new "AI Alive" option, which prompts you to "make this photo come alive." TikTok will surface suggested prompts, but you can also come up with your own. You can see the feature in action in the video below. In all three cases, I started with an image of my cat standing on a railing and used prompts suggested by TikTok. The first was "bring this to life as an anime," the second was for him to walk "carefully" along the railing and the last was "style this like a retro game." As you can see in the clip, the results were somewhat mixed. The anime-esque effect came out a bit creepy and erased my cat's tabby stripes, though I suppose it more or less aligned with the prompt. The second animation also looks a bit odd: there are numerous AI artifacts and my cat's tail and paws look unnatural. The final "retro game" style clip, though, is downright baffling. Why did TikTok's AI decide that my cat should hold up two comically huge wine glasses? Nothing about it evokes any video game I've ever played. Still, like many generative AI features, it's a fun novelty and I can see TikTok users having a lot of fun coming up with their own, probably bizarre, creations.

I used TikTok's new AI photo tool and now my cat has two heads. Send help

In May 2025, AI has (for better or worse) become a regular part of daily life. AI features are crammed into almost every new Android phone. Artificial intelligence is transforming how we search for things online, and it's quickly being added to every app you look at. Most recently, TikTok jumped aboard the AI bandwagon with a new feature called "AI Alive." As the name suggests, AI Alive uses AI to make your pictures come alive as short videos. You pick a photo on your phone, give it a prompt of what you want to see (or use one of TikTok's suggested prompts), and within two minutes, you've transformed your still image into a moving video clip. Sounds fun, right? I was hesitant about AI Alive as soon as I heard about it, and after using the feature myself, that hesitation was fully warranted. AI Alive may be technically impressive, but it's also downright horrifying. You can use TikTok's AI Alive feature for virtually any type of image. In its press release announcing the feature, TikTok offers examples of using it with a sunset photo or a group selfie. However, since TikTok's press images show AI Alive being used with pet pictures -- which accounts for the vast majority of my Google Photos library -- I decided to focus on that. I found a few photos of my cats and dog (plus some shots of a squirrel that regularly visits our birdfeeder), ran them through AI Alive, and awaited the results. Unfortunately, I wish I hadn't. It all started harmless enough. The first photo I tried was a simple one of my cat sitting on a pillow. The default prompt for every image you upload is "make this photo come alive," which is what I used for this one. And the video it created is ... fine, if not a little unnatural. There's a subtle zoom-in effect signaling the transformation from photo to AI-ified video, and in this one, my cat Polo turns his head and sticks his tongue out a couple of times. I don't love the way his tongue moves, but overall, it could be worse. And don't worry, it does get worse. The nightmare fuel starts piling on with the next two examples. With a picture of the aforementioned squirrel, I asked AI Alive to have the squirrel eat a nut. Instead, I got a video of it vomiting what looks like a fortune cookie. And, for good measure, the squirrel gained a couple of fangs in the process. I then tried another picture of Polo, this time with a prompt to show him stretching and running around. TikTok got the stretching part right, with Polo's arm shooting straight up into the air. But then it morphs into a second arm and then his head, before he tries walking out of frame with his rear legs completely limp. I hate every second of it. Don't you worry, it gets even worse. Switching to a picture of my parents' cat Scout, one of the suggested prompts was "licking his lips softly." He sure does lick his lips, but his face also transforms into what looks like a wolf. No thank you! How does AI Alive handle dog photos? I found one of my favorite pictures of my dog Damon and again used one of TikTok's prompts, this one being "stretching legs toward the sky." Instead, I got a video of feet (hands?) coming into frame to pet Damon. And since I had to see it, you do, too. And, finally, perhaps the worst example is the last one I'll share today. With the prompt "bouncing around in playful jumps," TikTok took an adorable photo of my cats sunbathing and turned it into a Cronenberg nightmare. My black cat's paw morphs into a second head that looks more like an otter than a cat. And for good measure, her "normal" head has also become a part of Polo's arm. Nope. Get it out of here. Burn it with fire. You can currently only access AI Alive when posting on TikTok Stories, and right now, you're limited to five AI Alive creations per day per TikTok account. TikTok will likely lessen these limitations as AI Alive matures, but based on the results above, it's probably a good thing the feature is being reined in right now. If you decide to use AI Alive for yourself, godspeed and good luck. And if you get your own awful, unnatural creations, feel free to share them below.

TikTok's newest AI filter turns your photos into videos - 9to5Mac

Today, TikTok announced AI Alive, an AI filter that will allow users to animate static photos through prompts. ByteDance says that this new image-to-video feature undergoes multiple checks to avoid misuse, and its output will be labeled as AI-generated. Here's how to use it. AI Alive is accessible through TikTok's Story Camera. After the user selects a photo from the Story Album, they see a new "AI Alive" icon alongside the traditional editing tools. Once tapped, the interface displays a text box in which the user can prompt the model with a description of what they want to happen in the photo-turned-video. As described by TikTok: Imagine capturing a serene sunset photo and effortlessly turning it into a cinematic clip: the sky gradually shifts hues, clouds drift lazily, and ambient sounds of waves crashing in the distance bring the scene to life. Or take a group selfie and bring it to life as a lively, animated memory that highlights the subtle gestures and expressions of friends or family. AI Alive unlocks these creative possibilities, taking everyday content to the next level. Addressing possible trust and safety concerns, TikTok stressed the security steps it takes to curb abuse. It also said that all videos created by AI Alive will embed C2PA metadata, currently the closest thing to an industry standard for labeling AI-generated media. Oddly enough, TikTok didn't share a video showcasing the feature in action, but it shouldn't take long for users to see them in their TikTok feed.

TikTok now lets you turn your photos into AI videos -- here's how to do it

Following in the footsteps of the likes of Kling and Sora, TikTok is jumping on the AI video trends, launching a filter called AI Alive. This filter allows users to turn static photos into video through the use of prompts. In a post announcing this new filter, Bytedance, the owners of TikTok, stated, "We all know a photo can say a thousand words, and TikTok aims to take this new form of visual storytelling even further." This tool only works through TikTok's story mode. To use it, open up your story camera (available in your Inbox or on your profile). Next, go to post a new story and insert a photo to use. When you do this, the AI alive icon will appear on the right hand side of the screen. Clicking this button will ask you to enter a prompt. The example given by TikTok is a cat and dog, with prompts asking for it to come to life, but it could be more focused on the actions. For example, something like "Dog rolls onto its back while the cat spins". Once you've created and posted the story, people can view it from within their For You or Following pages on TikTok. As well as on your profile page. Like other AI generations, this tool does raise some ethical concerns. Bytedance has responded to some of these in its announcement post. "As this technology enables new forms of creative expression, it undergoes multiple trust and safety checks to protect our community," Bytedance said. "To help prevent people from creating content that violates our policies, moderation technology reviews the uploaded photo and written AI generation prompt as well as the AI Alive video before it's shown to the creator." A final safety test is done when the creator decides to publicly post to their story. Other users can report these videos if inappropriate content does end up getting through. There will also be a label on any story using this technology highlighting that it was made using AI -- alongside embedded C2PA metadata. This is a kind of technology that helps others identify AI-generated content, even if it is removed from the TikTok platform. Like other AI tools, this filter is likely to get things wrong or hallucinate depending on the prompt that you give it. This, for the most part, will be pretty harmless with an odd-looking rendition of your dog or a foot blending into the ground. While this is the first AI-video announcement from TikTok, there are likely to be more to come considering the rising popularity of this technology.

TikTok's new AI Alive lets you turn images into videos - here's how to try it for free

The new AI tool brings your images to life directly from within TikTok Stories TikTok has launched a new AI feature that can turn your photos into videos, and it's available for free within TikTok Stories. The new feature, called TikTok AI Alive, allows you to transform static photos into "dynamic, immersive videos directly within TikTok Stories." TikTok says AI Alive "uses intelligent editing tools that give anyone, regardless of editing experience, the ability to transform static images into captivating, short-form videos enhanced with movement, atmospheric and creative effects." The press release for the launch emphasizes TikTok's aim to spark creativity within users, although we've yet to see how the platform's biggest creators take to this new AI tool. Some examples of how users can use AI Alive include "capturing a serene sunset photo and effortlessly turning it into a cinematic clip," or taking '"a group selfie and bringing it to life as a lively, animated memory that highlights the subtle gestures and expressions of friends or family." You can try AI Alive today for free, and it's surprisingly easy to use directly from within TikTok Stories: AI Alive is very easy to use - you just need a device with the TikTok app installed. Once you've logged in and have everything ready to go, follow these steps below to bring your image to life:

TikTok's New 'AI Alive' Tool Transforms Your Photos Into Videos with a Prompt

TikTok has launched its first image-to-video AI feature that can transform a user's photos into videos for free within the app. On Tuesday, TikTok announced "AI Alive," a tool that lets user turn their static photos into videos with a prompt to describe what they want the video to look like. This feature is available exclusively through TikTok's Story Camera. "AI Alive uses intelligent editing tools that give anyone, regardless of editing experience, the ability to transform static images into captivating, short-form videos enhanced with movement, atmospheric, and creative effects," TikTok writes in a blog post. In an example, TikTok explains how its AI Tool can turn a serene sunset photo into a cinematic clip: "where the sky gradually shifts hues, the clouds start to drift, and you hear the sound of waves crashing." Likewise, TikTok says a single group selfie can be transformed into a video that accentuates every gesture and expression among friends or family. To begin, users should open the Story Camera in the TikTok app by tapping the blue "+" icon located at the top of either the Inbox page or the Profile page. They can then select a single photo from their Story Album. On the photo edit page, the AI Alive Icon will appear on the right-side toolbar. Once the AI Alive Story is created and posted, it becomes viewable within the For You and Following feeds, as well as on the user's profile page, providing followers with multiple ways to engage with the content. According to TikTok, AI-generated stories created with AI Alive will feature a special label indicating they were made with AI. Additionally, each video will include embedded C2PA metadata -- a technical standard that ensures the AI origin is traceable even if the clip is downloaded and shared outside of TikTok. Users can flag any videos they believe violate the platform's guidelines, and TikTok performs a final safety review before an AI Alive story goes live. "As this technology enables new forms of creative expression, it undergoes multiple trust and safety checks to protect our community," TikTok writes. "To help prevent people from creating content that violates our policies, moderation technology reviews the uploaded photo and written AI generation prompt as well as the AI Alive video before it's shown to the creator."

TikTok introduces AI Alive to turn photos into animated videos

TikTok AI Alive, a feature the app launched on Tuesday, helps users turn static photos into "captivating, short-form videos enhanced with movement, atmospheric and creative effects" when they use the TikTok Story Camera. "We all know a photo can say a thousand words, and TikTok aims to take this new form of visual storytelling even further," TikTok said in a blog post. "With AI Alive, creators can now easily animate their photos and tell richer, more visually engaging stories for their communities." To use the tool, users must first navigate to the Story Camera by tapping the blue plus sign on their profile image at the top left of the Inbox page and in the center of their profile. Turn "Alive" on by clicking the button on the top right of your screen, and then choose a single photo and type in how you want the photo to change. You can also choose a photo first, and then click the AI Alive icon on the right sidebar and type in how you want the photo to change. For instance, if it's a static photo of yourself, you can prompt AI Alive to make your photo dance, wink, or lean in. The tool will count down how long it will take for the effect to work, and once you're done waiting, you have an AI version of your photo. It looks pretty darn realistic for AI, and might be difficult for people to catch. TikTok said in its blog post that "moderation technology reviews the uploaded photo and written AI generation prompt as well as the AI Alive video before it's shown to the creator." "A final safety check happens once a creator decides to post to their Story," TikTok's blog post reads. "Just like other content, people can report videos they think may break our rules. In addition, AI Alive stories will have an AI-generated label to bring transparency to how the content was created, and have C2PA metadata embedded -- a kind of technology that helps others identify that it's AI-generated, even if it's downloaded and shared off platform." While this is one of the first in-app image-to-video generators using AI, this isn't the first time TikTok -- or any social media platform, for that matter -- has introduced AI. You can use AI on Instagram and Snapchat to turn text into images, and Snapchat says it's working on what sounds like a similar AI tool to generate videos from images. All the while, TikTok is allegedly working on a feature that would allow users to send photos and voice messages via direct messages, according to The Information. Most new features like this are aimed at keeping users on a platform for longer and increasing engagement. Snapchat, Instagram, and Facebook already allow users to share photos over DM, but TikTok users can only share videos, stickers, and text over DM, and they have to be over 16 years old.

TikTok's New AI Tool Can Now Turn Your Images Into Short Videos

TikTok is not letting users post videos in the feed using the feature TikTok is introducing a new artificial intelligence (AI) feature that will allow users to turn an image into an animated video. On Tuesday, the vertical video-based social media platform announced a new AI feature dubbed AI Alive that uses generative AI technology to create videos from photos. Currently, the tool can only be used to generate videos in TikTok Stories, and not directly to the feed. Additionally, the company said it is taking several steps to mitigate the risk of the feature being abused by users. In a newsroom post on its US website, TikTok announced the rollout of the new AI feature. It is the first AI-powered image-to-video generation tool offered by any of the video-focused social media platforms. Instagram, X, and Snapchat do not offer any AI-powered video generation tools. While YouTube Shorts has recently begun testing a text-to-video generation feature, it has not been rolled out widely. The TikTok AI Alive feature can be found by tapping the blue plus icon (+) on the top of the Inbox page or Profile page. There, users will first have to select a single image from their Story Album. The AI Alive icon is located on the right side toolbar on the photo edit page. It should be placed in the second spot from the top. Tapping on the AI Alive icon opens another window where users can add a text prompt of how they want the image to be animated. If they are not sure, they can also use one of the many suggested text prompts on the same page. Once done, they can tap the generate button and a short video is created. Users can then post the video, and people can video the story from within the For You and Following feeds, as well as on the user's profile page. The company said that it has implemented moderation technology to review the uploaded photo, text prompt, and the AI Alive video before it is shown to the creator. A final check occurs when the user posts the video to their Story. Additionally, other users can report videos they think might break the platform's guidelines. Apart from that, TikTok is also adding a visible AI-generated label to let people know that this is a synthetic video. Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity (C2PA) metadata, a standard among major AI players, is also added to every AI-generated video, the company said.

TikTok's 'AI Alive' Brings Photos to Life: Cool or Just Creepy?

Privacy advocates generally approve these measures. The balance between innovation and protection seems reasonable. Continuous monitoring ensures the feature evolves responsibly. TikTok demonstrates commitment to user safety while pushing creative boundaries. discover innovative applications daily. Photographers animate portfolio pieces. Artists experiment with surreal effects. Storytellers transform photo series into narratives. The TikTok AI alive feature democratizes animation access. Businesses instantly sense the marketing potential. Product pictures get that much-needed dynamic appeal. Demonstrations for services become fun to watch. Small businesses make their content look professional at affordable rates. The tool acts impartially between large brands and small ones. Popular prompts reveal user preferences clearly. It is safe to say that "Add subtle movement" works every time. Similarly, "Create atmospheric effects" will never lead to disappointment. "Make eyes blink naturally" yields realistic results to get animated pictures. People started sharing prompts that worked or directing others to them to reach their desired effects. This technology fits so well within TikTok's wider AI thrust. Previous features were limited to AI voiceovers and chatbots. The platform has since continued enhancing its array of creative tools. Every tool adds to user capabilities without requiring technical expertise