Google invests $75M in A24 to build AI filmmaking tools, starting with storyboards

What happened

Google DeepMind is investing roughly $75 million in A24, the indie studio behind films like Everything Everywhere All At Once, Marty Supreme, and the blockbuster Backrooms. The deal, first reported by The Wall Street Journal and confirmed across multiple outlets, marks Google's first equity stake in a film studio.

The partnership is structured as a multiyear, nonexclusive research agreement. A24 filmmakers will get hands-on access to DeepMind's research infrastructure, while DeepMind receives real-time feedback from working directors as it builds new creative tools. The collaboration covers production, postproduction, and distribution.

The first project is already underway at A24 Labs: an AI tool to generate storyboards — the rough visual sketches directors use to plan scenes before cameras roll. An A24 representative told the WSJ that the tools "won't look anything like the prompted generative type of AI that people feel uncomfortable with."

Crucially, the deal does not grant Google access to A24's existing film and television library or its content data for model training. A24 is also not locked into using only Google's tools.

DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis framed the partnership as artist-first: "We believe the best way to develop tools that empower artists is to work directly with them. By collaborating with filmmakers and industry leaders like A24 from the beginning, we can build new AI features to support artists in authentic, meaningful storytelling that helps enable their creative vision."

Eli Collins, a vice president of product for DeepMind, added: "We believe breakthroughs happen when you get technology into the hands of the best minds in the field."

Why it matters

A24 occupies a unique cultural position: it's the studio that young, cinephile audiences trust precisely because it champions auteur-driven, unconventional filmmaking. That audience is also among the most AI-skeptical demographics in entertainment. The partnership therefore represents a high-stakes test of whether AI tools can be introduced into prestige creative workflows without alienating either filmmakers or fans.

The deal also signals a broader industry trend. TechCrunch notes that Netflix acquired Ben Affleck's AI tooling company Interpositive earlier this year, and Amazon has also been exploring AI in production. Google's move into A24 — a studio recently valued at roughly $3.5 billion following a prior funding round with Thrive — shows that major tech companies are now competing to embed themselves in Hollywood's creative pipeline, not just its distribution infrastructure.

The constraints A24 imposed are notable: no library access, no prompted generative output, nonexclusive terms. This suggests a deliberate effort to distance the partnership from the controversies that have dogged generative AI in entertainment, where concerns about training data, copyright, and job displacement have been acute.

What to watch

• Whether A24's filmmakers, including AI-critical voices like Kane Parsons, will actually adopt the storyboard tool or refuse to use it.
• Whether the partnership's scope stays limited to workflow assistance or eventually expands toward generative content in postproduction or distribution.
• How A24's young, AI-skeptical audience reacts to the brand's embrace of Google-backed AI — and whether it affects box office or subscription behavior.
• Whether Google's "first-of-its-kind" equity stake in a film studio prompts rival tech companies to pursue similar deals with other prestige studios.