Sora is OpenAI's new text-to-video generator: Here's what we know about the tool
Sora — OpenAI's new text-to-video generator. The tool, which the San Francisco company unveiled Thursday, uses generative artificial intelligence to instantly create short videos based on written commands.
Sora isn't the first to demonstrate this kind of technology. But industry analysts point to the high quality of the tool's videos displayed so far, and note that its introduction marks a significant leap for both OpenAI and the future of text-to-video generation overall.
Still, as with all things in the rapidly growing AI space today, such technology also raises fears about potential ethical and societal implications. Here's what you need to know.
WHAT IS SORA? CAN I USE IT YET? Sora is a text-to-video generator — creating videos up to 60 seconds long based on written prompts using generative AI. The model can also generate video from an existing still image.
Generative AI is a branch of AI that can create something new. Examples include chatbots, like OpenAI's ChatGPT, and image-generators such as DALL-E and Midjourney. Getting an AI system to generate videos is newer and more challenging but relies on some of the same technology.
Sora isn't available for public use yet (OpenAI says it's engaging with policymakers and artists before officially releasing the tool) and there's a lot we still don't know. But since Thursday's announcement, the company has shared a handful of examples of Sora-generated videos to show off what it can do.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman also took to X, the platform formerly known as
