Full text-to-video platform PhenomenalAI has been entered into the inception programmes of both Nvidia and Microsoft as it gears up for its commercial launch in the coming weeks. Currently, in the closed beta testing stage, the platform is also looking to raise $5 million in the first round of funding.
Founded by four friends from the ad production industry — Sanjay Rodrigues, Meenakshi Mukherjee, Firoz F. Merchant, and Vyom Mahamunkar — PhenomenalAI aims to capture the video creation market in advertising, filmmaking, and education.
“For the past year, we have been working on the tech to create India’s first full text-to-video AI platform. So, what our platform does is create a video from scratch using the prompts given,” Rodrigues said.
Microsoft’s GrowthX Accelerator and Nvidia’s Inception programmes support startups by providing tech development resources and access to a network of investors.”
For PhenomenalAI, being in these programmes has helped get access to enough GPUs (graphics processing unit — an electronic circuit that performs mathematical calculations to process graphics and other visual data) to scale up their testing as they near launch, Rodrigues said.
Currently, platforms like Invideo, VideoGen, and Veed.io offer text-to-video services, using information and elements from across the web to generate the desired output, similar to how ChatGPT processes text.
“Think of our platform as using a distorted noise from which, depending on the prompt given, it creates the desired video. There is no issue with privacy or copyright with this since whatever is created, is new,” Rodrigues explained.
In the works for over a year now, the four co-founders have invested around Rs 2 crore on the tech alone, and expect to start monetising the product on launch. While he refrained from giving any names, Rodrigues said that they are already in talks with brands for projects.
“Having a background in advertising, that is a captive market for us. We can create pipelines for brands which will keep the packaging constant and help them refresh their video ads faster,” he added.
While Rodrigues sees ample application for the platform in entertainment, especially for independent content creators and aspiring filmmakers and visualisers, he also sees the scope of the platform extending to fields like education.
“A teacher can create a small video to explain a concept like the Pythagoras theorem or make illustrations that will engage the students across subjects. I would like the application to go beyond entertainment and advertising. It is a way of democratising content creation and all you need is a phone/laptop and an internet connection,” he said.
A lot, however, will depend on the pricing. As a tech-intensive venture, PhenomenalAI will rely on subscriptions for revenue. The platform will offer different pricing strategies for personal and business use, but Rodrigues did not disclose the details at this time.
So will the job of a videographer become redundant now? Rodrigues thinks not. “I think what this platform and AI in general will do is facilitate the human imagination and help do a job more efficiently. For example, the tool will help a visualiser bring their concept to life more accurately (provided the correct prompts are used),” he said.
