TL;DR
Google is investing $75M in A24 and launching a DeepMind research partnership to build AI filmmaking tools shaped by working directors.
Google is investing roughly $75 million in A24, the independent studio behind recent hits including Backrooms and Obsession, as part of a new AI research partnership between the studio and Google DeepMind. The deal, first reported by the Wall Street Journal, marks Google’s first equity stake in a film studio.
The partnership gives A24 filmmakers hands-on access to DeepMind’s research infrastructure, while DeepMind gets real-time feedback from working directors as it builds new creative tools. DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis said the goal is to develop tools that empower artists by working with them from day one rather than building in isolation.
Crucially, the deal does not give Google access to A24’s existing film and television library or its content data. The partnership is structured as a multiyear, nonexclusive research agreement, meaning A24 is not locked into using only Google’s tools and Google cannot train models on the studio’s catalogue.
The 💜 of EU tech
The latest rumblings from the EU tech scene, a story from our wise ol’ founder Boris, and some questionable AI art. It’s free, every week, in your inbox. Sign up now!
One early project already under way at A24 Labs involves using AI to generate storyboards, the rough visual sketches directors use to plan scenes before cameras roll. Scott Belsky, an A24 partner who leads the studio’s technology division, told the Journal that the partnership differs from other Hollywood AI deals because most AI developers mistakenly pitch their products as a way to make films cheaper and faster rather than better.
The investment arrives as Hollywood’s relationship with AI is shifting rapidly. Netflix acquired Ben Affleck’s stealth AI filmmaking startup InterPositive in March, gaining exclusive post-production tools trained on real footage. Netflix has since established INKubator, an internal AI-native animation studio staffed with producers and engineers.
Martin Scorsese joined AI image startup Black Forest Labs as an adviser in June, using its FLUX model to storyboard scenes for his next film starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Lawrence. OpenAI is backing Critterz, an AI-assisted animated feature with a budget under $30 million that was shown at Cannes, produced on a nine-month timeline that would typically take years in traditional animation.
A24 brings a distinctive position to the AI conversation. The studio has built one of the most recognisable brands in independent film over the past decade, and survey data cited by multiple outlets shows more than half of moviegoers identify as fans of the studio itself rather than just individual titles. It is also preparing its most ambitious production yet, an Elden Ring adaptation directed by Alex Garland with a budget that multiple sources place well above $100 million.
The deal also lands days after Amazon dropped its nearly finished Sam Altman biopic, reportedly because the film portrayed its $50 billion OpenAI investment partner unfavourably. That episode illustrated how financial ties between tech companies and studios can create editorial conflicts, a dynamic the Google-A24 partnership will need to navigate as the tools it produces become part of actual productions.
For Google, the $75 million is modest relative to its broader AI spending, which Alphabet has guided at $175 billion to $185 billion in capital expenditure for 2026. But the strategic value lies in positioning DeepMind as the AI partner that filmmakers choose rather than resist, a framing that matters as the industry’s labour negotiations over AI use continue.
Stephan is the sports journalist for the Maple Grove Report.
