Netflix Acquires Ben Affleck’s AI Startup ‘Interpositive’ for $587 Million

According to CinemaDrame News Agency, Netflix revealed in its official filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that it paid $587 million in cash to acquire Ben Affleck’s artificial intelligence startup, “Interpositive.” This disclosure comes months after Bloomberg reported that the deal could be valued at up to $600 million for Affleck and his investors. The remaining balance of the amount will be paid out based on the “achievement of certain specified performance milestones.”

Netflix acquired the startup—which Affleck founded in 2022 and had previously operated in stealth mode—with the goal of developing AI tools that “place filmmakers at the center of the production process.” With this deal, Interpositive’s 16-member team of engineers, researchers, and artists has joined Netflix, and Ben Affleck will collaborate with the streaming giant as a senior advisor. The company’s tools allow filmmakers to use daily production rushes to build a custom AI model. This model assists them in post-production stages such as sound mixing, color correction, and visual effects, bypassing the need for conventional, fully generative AI video creation methods.

At the time of the merger announcement, Ben Affleck stated: “From the invention of the moving image to the transition to digital cinema, and from motion capture to virtual production, technology has always evolved alongside the artists who use it. Our shared commitment to continuing this legacy, combined with Netflix’s decades of experience in responsibly implementing and scaling technology, made our union a natural next step.”

During Netflix’s second-quarter earnings call, co-CEO Ted Sarandos highlighted the integration of generative AI tools and the collaboration with Interpositive, adding that around 300 Netflix titles this year have utilized generative AI in some capacity. While noting that the deal is still in its early stages, he emphasized that Netflix has already observed its positive impact on projects alongside their internal tools.

However, while referencing the use of AI in the documentary series American Experiment to produce sequences at “twice the speed and half the cost of previous methods,” Sarandos pointed out that the company has no desire to replace human-made work with generative technologies. He concluded: “We believe that it takes great artists to make great art, and AI does not change that. Movies are made by people who make movies; AI just gives them better tools to make their work even better.”