Vimeo, the popular video hosting and software company, announced today the launch of a suite of AI tools that it says will transform professional video production. The company is introducing a script generator, an on-camera teleprompter and an automated video editor that can remove unwanted filler words and pauses instantly with the click of a button.

In a recent interview with VentureBeat, Ashraf Alkarmi, chief product officer at Vimeo, discussed the challenges faced during the development of the AI Video Suite and the potential impact it could have on the video production industry.

“The AI space obviously has accelerated buzz around it. There’s a lot of pressure from every company to jump on the AI bandwagon,” said Alkarmi. He emphasized that Vimeo’s focus remained on delivering value to its customers through AI, rather than simply jumping on that bandwagon.

Alkarmi sees the AI Video Suite as a game-changer in the democratization of video creation tools. “This product launch is literally about democratizing the creation of amazing video content, and communicating via video in a way that makes it fast, efficient and high-quality altogether,” he explained.

Video creation made faster and easier

With the new AI Video Suite, Vimeo aims to lower the barrier to entry for video creation and communication, enabling more people to connect meaningfully through video.

Alkarmi predicts that the platform’s user base will evolve, with more users creating video messages and communication videos, and an overall improvement in video quality, resulting in higher engagement across the platform.

The new features, which will be available next month with Vimeo’s $20-per-month Standard Plan, use artificial intelligence to simplify and speed up the video creation process. The script generator can produce a full video script from a brief prompt in seconds, tailoring language and length as needed. The teleprompter allows users to “look directly into the camera” by displaying the script as the video is being recorded.

“The biggest surprise is how many ums and ahhs [people] say,” Alkarmi explained. “With this product, when you’re done recording, there’s a magic button you can click that shows how many gap words you said, how many filler words you said. You press one button, and they’re gone.”

Simplifying video creation for businesses

The announcement confirms Vimeo’s ambitions to become a one-stop shop for business video needs as more companies invest in video for marketing, training and virtual events. With strong competition from YouTube and other platforms, Vimeo appears to be betting that advanced video production and editing features tailored for professionals will give it an edge. The new AI tools may make the company an even more formidable rival.

Alkarmi said that Vimeo’s AI Video Suite is unique in the market because it is an end-to-end product suite that enables users to do everything from creating a script to hosting and sharing their videos on Vimeo’s platform without having to switch between different products or services.

“Vimeo is the only complete video experience platform for individuals and organizations. And we’ve grown to solve customer problems in many large enterprise use cases,” he said. “We have capabilities that you can create a video from a template. And we have recording, which is a very dominant use case for executive communications, training and enablement and simply using video as a means to communicate.”

Alkarmi said that Vimeo’s AI video suite has received positive feedback from beta testers who have described it as “magical,” “game-changing” and “transformative.” He also shared his own experience of using the product and how it saved him hours of time and improved the quality of his videos.

“It used to take me about two hours to do a really good 10-minute video,” he said. “And now it takes me about 12 minutes.”

The changing landscape of internet video

Alkarmi said that Vimeo’s AI Video Suite has expansive applications across various industries such as marketing, education, entertainment and internal communications. He said that he envisions a future where video becomes a dominant medium for communication and collaboration.

“Video should be no different than email, text messaging or calls,” he said. “And by enabling a simple way to create a video and removing that fear of actually doing it, we believe it’s the most powerful medium to do so.”

He also hinted at Vimeo’s plans to integrate with other AI solutions and innovate further in the AI space, but did not provide any specific details.

“We’re super excited about what we’re cooking up on AI at Vimeo. And once we talk more about it, it will be very consistent with who we are,” he said. “We believe that AI knowledge is a prerequisite, not a luxury, to video production. Leaders need to adapt now and empower their teams to create more efficiently, or risk getting left behind.”