Creativity sparks inspiration, joy, and deeper connections for more than one billion people on TikTok, and we're passionate about building tools that empower anyone to tap into their creativity and become a creator on TikTok. Today, we're excited to introduce TikTok AI Alive, our first-of-its-kind creative feature that transforms static photos into dynamic, immersive videos directly within TikTok Stories.

We all know a photo can say a thousand words, and TikTok aims to take this new form of visual storytelling even further. With AI Alive, creators can now easily animate their photos and tell richer, more visually engaging stories for their communities. Available exclusively within TikTok’s Story Camera, AI Alive uses intelligent editing tools that give anyone, regardless of editing experience, the ability to transform static images into captivating, short-form videos enhanced with movement, atmospheric and creative effects.


As TikTok's first AI-driven image-to-video creation feature, AI Alive places creativity control directly in your hands. Imagine capturing a serene sunset photo and effortlessly turning it into a cinematic clip: the sky gradually shifts hues, clouds drift lazily, and ambient sounds of waves crashing in the distance bring the scene to life. Or take a group selfie and bring it to life as a lively, animated memory that highlights the subtle gestures and expressions of friends or family. AI Alive unlocks these creative possibilities, taking everyday content to the next level.


How it works:

  • To get started, open Story Camera by tapping the blue "+" on the top of the Inbox page or Profile page.
  • Choose a single photo from your Story Album.
  • The AI Alive Icon will appear on the right side toolbar on the photo edit page.
  • After creating and posting your AI Alive Story, people can view the story from within the For You and Following feeds, as well as on your profile page, giving your followers a variety of ways to connect with your content.

We are always building with safety in mind and the same goes for our AI innovations. As this technology enables new forms of creative expression, it undergoes multiple trust and safety checks to protect our community. To help prevent people from creating content that violates our policies, moderation technology reviews the uploaded photo and written AI generation prompt as well as the AI Alive video before it's shown to the creator. A final safety check happens once a creator decides to post to their Story. Just like other content, people can report videos they think may break our rules. In addition, AI Alive stories will have an AI-generated label to bring transparency to how the content was created, and have C2PA metadata embedded—a kind of technology that helps others identify that it’s AI-generated, even if it’s downloaded and shared off platform.

We're excited to see how creators embrace AI Alive to enhance storytelling, share authentic moments, and inspire creativity throughout the TikTok community.