Adobe explores OpenAI partnership for third-party AI tools in Premiere Pro

Software giant Adobe has announced plans to integrate third-party generative artificial intelligence tools into its widely used video editing software, Premiere Pro. This announcement, made on Monday, signals Adobe's foray into harnessing the power of AI to enhance its already popular editing platform.

Premiere Pro, a staple in the television and film industries, is set to undergo significant upgrades this year, with the incorporation of AI-based features. These features promise to revolutionise the editing process by enabling tasks such as seamlessly filling in parts of a scene with AI-generated objects and removing distractions without manual intervention from editors.

At the forefront of this innovation is Firefly, an AI model already deployed in Adobe's Photoshop software for editing still images. The company's strategy to leverage Firefly, coupled with plans to integrate third-party AI tools, aims to set Adobe apart in a competitive landscape dominated by the likes of OpenAI, Midjourney, and other startups.

Acknowledging concerns regarding copyright infringement, Adobe reassured users by offering indemnity against potential claims, emphasising its commitment to using data with full rights. Moreover, the company is actively developing mechanisms to allow users to access third-party tools, including offerings from OpenAI, Runway, and Pika Labs, within Premiere Pro.

This move comes amidst growing interest in AI-generated content, with OpenAI's Sora model showcasing its capability to create realistic videos based on text prompts. While Adobe presented a demonstration of Sora's integration with Premiere Pro, the company has yet to provide a timeline for its release, labelling the demonstration as an "experiment."

Deepa Subramaniam, Adobe's vice president of product marketing for creative professional apps, highlighted the company's commitment to ethical AI practices and transparency. She assured users that Adobe's industry-leading approach to AI ethics and bias mitigation would remain unchanged, while also expressing excitement about the potential for integrating third-party AI models.

Regarding revenue sharing with outside developers, Subramaniam stated that Adobe is still deliberating on the specifics. However, she assured users that they would be notified when non-Adobe AI models are utilised and that all videos produced by Premiere Pro would clearly indicate the AI technology employed.

"Our industry-leading AI ethics approach and the human bias work that we do, none of that's going away," Subramaniam told Reuters. "We're really excited to explore a world where you can have more choice beyond that through third-party models."