Summarize and humanize this content to 2000 words in 6 paragraphs in English
The 2025 National Association of Broadcasters Show wrapped last week in Las Vegas, following a busy convention that attracted an estimated 55,000 delegates from the media and entertainment industries. While attendance remains far below pre-pandemic levels – the 2019 edition reported 90,000 attendees – it’s clear that AI is steering an industry in transition, fueling the rapid pace of technology change and growth of the creator economy. In fact, NAB reported that more than half of attendees (53%) were first-time show goers while 26% came from outside the U.S.
“This is the age of the generalist,” suggested Eric Shamlin, CEO of AI-driven production studio Secret Level and co-chair of the TV Academy’s AI Task Force, during one panel that addressed how AI is currently in use. “The other thing we are seeing is it’s putting a spotlight back on the creative vision. … People can now create space operas in their bedroom. I think we are about to see a massive unlocking of human creativity…To be a creative, previously, was a very limited group. This blows that apart.”
Speakers debated subjects from creative control to how AI could help to make production faster and cheaper, as well as thorny adoption issues ranging from jobs to data provenance. Shamlin emphasized his “commitment to how to [use AI] responsibly, not replace artists, and be a voice in how these tools get adopted.”
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences president Janet Yang emphasized a need to preserve “human authorship,” while speaking on another panel during what was her first visit to the annual confab. “We need the human behind the AI,” she said. “I feel cautiously optimistic that we will find a path for what will be a big part of our lives.”
AI tools could be found across the expansive convention center, from tech for content discovery to workflow and content creation. “It’s still in a state of discovery,” said Karen Chupka, executive vice president of the NAB Show. “There’s a little bit of trying to understand what is real versus what is hype of AI. I think people are trying to learn.”
Showgoers attended demonstrations and examined new AI tools across the exhibition halls, and it was evident that these conversations are expanding. “We have spend an enormous amount of time over the last year making sure that we are engaging with the community and engaging with the guilds,” said Adobe director of product marketing Meagan Keane. “We have a very close relationship with ACE and MPEG. We also have both business but also pressure testing conversation with, like, UTA.”
At NAB, Adobe’s announcements included the release of Generative Extend, an AI feature integrated in its Premiere Pro editing software, designed for tasks such as extending frames at the beginning or end of a clip, or creating audio edits by generating “room tone” where none exists. Said Keane, “The number one thing we are hearing from Hollywood is, ‘we want to stay creative; we want to stay in control of the creative process. We are interested in AI, but for the most part we are interested in AI where it can help take a lot of the ‘tech’ out and leave me to focus on the creative stuff.’”
Newly-integrated into the Avid Media Composer is startup Flawless’ DeepEditor, an AI tool developed to “update dialogue and refine performances.” Flawless’ senior vice president of customer success Peter Busch reported that Flawless is talking with guilds such as SAG-AFTRA and MPEG about application of its tools and training.
“We worked with [the Editors Guild’s] emerging tech committee over the last couple months. They wanted to do a deep dive on the tool and understand what it can do,” Busch said, explaining that Flawless provided trials of its tools and MPEG provided input. “The next round of discussions is on the training side.” He put forward the idea that “it creates more jobs in the edit. [For instance] this would go to upskilling the assistant editors to be effects editors, because what we’re fundamentally doing is a visual effects edit.”
With 1,000 exhibitors, there were too many AI announcements to mention, but they included Blackmagic’s new version of postproduction system Resolve, which now includes AI IntelliScript, developed to create timelines based on a text script, and an AI Audio Assistant. A string of AI startups in attendance included TwelveLabs, which is developing video analysis tools for the media and entertainment industry. At NAB, It announced a deal with Amazon Web Services through which it will bring its tools to the Amazon Bedrock developers service.
Amid the trade war, uncertainty surrounding the impact of tariffs on entertainment technology manufacturers and their customers was also apparent at NAB. “It was scary,” one source from the Hollywood postproduction community told Variety. “The fear is palpable. Things can be untenable and this is a very niche business.” The source added that if prices reach such a point, “I think people are just going to not buy stuff here [in the U.S.] We already have runaway production, now we could have runaway manufacturing.”
The next NAB Show will be held in Las Vegas from April 18-22, 2026.
