If you're not using AI at all in your video editing workflow, you might be missing the tricks. Even if you're not interested in flashy features like image generation (and I'll tell you in advance that I'm not), there are plenty of productivity hacks and time adversaries that AI can offer to make a real, concrete difference to your editing.
However, you need to have a proper setup. Many AI video editing tools like Topaz AI have extremely high system requirements for the product to function effectively. And if you're an edit on old rigs that have been around for years, you might have rejected them for this reason. But putting a little money into a PC upgrade that allows for AI features really improves editing speed. This will allow you to regain that money by taking on more projects.
Here we will explain six ways to convert video editing by making the most of AI with the right computer setup. Obviously all editors are different and all of these points may not apply to your work, but at least some of them will.
1. Save time
This is what underpins all the remaining points here, but it is highlighted – a proper video editing setup with a proper video editing setup, plenty of RAM, a high clock speed CPU, and a discrete GPU makes the life of video editing very easy in terms of saving time. You can move multiple large clips around the timeline without the software being frozen and crashed, allowing you to render and export projects in minutes, allowing you to use powerful auto features such as auto-color grading. It all becomes a faster editor.
Footage that may have once been a candidate for immediate junking – shots that are out of focus or significantly compromised by camera headlines – are now potentially able to rescue them thanks to clever AI-powered tools.
A fast enough setup will allow you to take advantage of editing tools such as Topaz AI removal. This intelligently distinguishes noise and detail, cleaning up and sharpening footage that could have been junk because it was previously filmed because the ISO was too high. However, the software Topaz system requirements recommend that you need a separate graphics card with at least 6GB VRAM. So you can see how important it is to have a proper setup.
(Image credit: Topaz Labs)
Alternatively, programs like Davinci Resolve have stabilization capabilities that can save handheld footage without a gimbal, ironing the kinks with extremely jerky camera movements to make them look like a smooth, intentional transition. Provide more usable clips gives you more options for editing. Also, more options are always good.
Daily design news, reviews, how-tos, as the editor chose.
3. Auto subtitles and narration
Social media videos are expected to be constantly subtitles, as many people see on mute. For accessibility reasons, you should always be able to provide subtitle options for videos you publish.
AI tools make subtitle production much easier, with the ability to automatically transcribe audio and automatically generate subtitles that are ready for additional purposes. These are by no means perfect and you should always check them, but the process is much faster than manual transcription.
Things can also be done in the opposite direction. For example, you can use Canva's AI voice generator to turn your speech into narration using AI. Although we do not use this tool to exchange human narration, it is a great way to re-enhance video accessibility by providing an option for audio descriptions.
(Image credit: CyberLink)
4. Upscaling and speed change
Upscaling – that is, increasing the resolution of your content – was something that until recently seemed like science fiction (“Enhance!”). However, AI has become a reality. Tools like TopazAI can now improve image resolution by generating additional pixels.
The latest video has a minimum resolution of 1080p, with 4K expected to be desirable. If you have footage below that threshold, AI upscaling can help you reach the required standard. Davinci Resolve's SuperScale has recently been upgraded to provide 3x or 4x enhanced footage.
(Image credit: Topaz Labs)
Similar technologies can also be used to convert footage into slow motion using AI. Slow motion videos are, after all, shot on simple videos at higher frame rates, allowing AI to use AI to generate additional frames between existing frames to slow things down. Many modern editing programs now have this feature, including downloadable programs such as Cyberlink Powerdirector and online editors such as Veed.
5. Automatic masking
Masking is a technique used in video editing to select specific areas within a clip to edit with visual effects. For example, if you want to blur a person's face, you may be using an oval mask to select the face and then it is blurry. This is easy enough, but masking can be much more complicated and time-consuming. So it's really exciting to see automatic masking tools with AI start to take shape.
Programs like PowerDirector, Premiere and Resolve incorporate intelligent masking tools that allow you to identify and select specific objects or subjects for masking, even in busy scenes. This makes it easy to add effects to a particular person or object, even if you move them all over the clip in a complex way.
6. Smart Reconfiguration
A common part of the recent job of video editors is cutting the same video against different aspect ratios. Tiktok videos should be vertical and long form YouTube videos should be horizontal. It's all easy, but it can take time. Intelligent, AI-powered tools like Davinci Resolve's Smart Refame can detect the subject of a clip and automatically place it in the center of the frame, which takes up a huge amount of work from here on.
As they move, it follows them. This is very useful for vertical videos, especially as there is a very narrow field of view to keep your subject inside (not to mention the audience looking for an excuse to swipe). You can also manually set your own reference point, rather than relying on auto-detection. This is useful if something unusual.
