Insights

Who Really Owns AI-Generated Video? Understanding IP, Rights, and Brand Protection

Written by Phoebe Aldrich | Feb 26, 2026 10:51:45 AM

Who Really Owns AI-Generated Video?

AI is rapidly transforming video production… and don’t we know it. All I am seeing on LinkedIn is AI videos at the moment…

From video generation and concept development to previsualisation, animation and post-production workflows, artificial intelligence is now embedded across the production pipeline. For any modern AI video production company or AI video agency, these tools are becoming part of the creative engine.

But there’s a critical question that often gets overlooked:

Who actually owns AI-generated video content?

The Advertising Producers Association (APA) recently analysed the rights granted and retained by the 25 AI tools most used for film and image creation. The findings are essential reading for brands working with an AI video agency, as well as production partners integrating AI into commercial workflows.

Here’s what it means in practice.

Enterprise Ownership: The Emerging Standard

At enterprise level, the most common contractual position is clear:

Full ownership of AI-generated outputs is granted to the customer.

Across most major vendors, the dominant wording assigns all right, title and interest in outputs to the customer.

For brands commissioning AI-assisted video production, that typically includes:

  • Copyright in the generated video assets
  • Database rights
  • Any other intellectual property rights that may subsist in the outputs

In some agreements, ownership is automatically assigned upon creation. In others, the structure is a perpetual, exclusive, royalty-free licence that is effectively equivalent to ownership.

Enterprise clients require:

  • Clear IP ownership for commercial video exploitation
  • Freedom to edit, adapt and repurpose content across campaigns
  • Legal certainty for paid media, global distribution and long-term brand use

For any serious AI video production company, clean output ownership is now baseline.

Where AI Video Production Gets Complicated

While enterprise contracts often look reassuring, not all AI vendors take the same approach.

1. Licence Instead of Ownership

Some providers grant a broad, perpetual licence rather than assigning full ownership.

In day-to-day use, this may feel similar. But for IP-heavy campaigns, brand films, franchise assets or recurring video formats, the distinction matters.

If you are commissioning an AI video agency to create long-term brand assets, clarity on ownership is critical.

2. Ambiguous Output Language

A smaller group of vendors use unclear or mixed language around output ownership.

Ambiguity introduces risk:

  • Can you exclusively commercialise the video?
  • Can you enforce rights internationally?
  • What happens if similar outputs appear elsewhere?

For brands investing in AI-assisted video production at scale, grey areas in contracts can quickly become commercial exposure.

The Bigger Risk in AI Video: Training Rights

Ownership is only part of the equation.

The more significant risk often lies in training and model improvement rights.

Some vendors reserve the right to use inputs or outputs to improve their models, even within enterprise plans.

In practical terms, that could mean:

  • Your creative concepts
  • Your scripts
  • Your visual treatments
  • Your AI-generated video assets

…being used to refine future versions of the model, unless explicitly excluded.

Best-practice enterprise AI terms now look like this:

  • Customer owns outputs
  • Provider may not use inputs or outputs for training or model improvement
  • Limited licence only for security, compliance and service delivery

For brands seeking an AI video agency partner, this is the contractual gold standard.

Why This Matters for Brands Commissioning AI Video

AI is no longer experimental in video production. It is being used in:

  • AI-generated previsualisation
  • Synthetic background and environment creation
  • AI-enhanced editing and localisation
  • Automated content repurposing
  • AI-assisted animation workflows

If ownership and training rights are unclear, brands face three core risks:

  1. IP contamination risk
  2. Exclusivity challenges in paid media
  3. Reputational risk if similar outputs appear elsewhere

For global campaigns, regulated sectors and long-term brand platforms, this is not theoretical. It is a strategic consideration.

Our View as an AI Video Production Company

AI is not a shortcut. It is an accelerator.

But acceleration without governance creates exposure.

As an AI video production company, we integrate AI tools into our workflows with:

  • Enterprise-grade contracts
  • Clear output ownership
  • Clean training carve-outs
  • Transparent documentation

As an AI video agency, our responsibility is not just creative innovation. It is commercial protection.

The future of video production will be AI-assisted. That is inevitable.

The real differentiator will not be who uses AI.

It will be which AI video production companies use it responsibly, securely and strategically.

Thinking about an AI-driven video project? Let’s turn your idea into something extraordinary — schedule a call with us today!