Netflix has announced that, for the first time, it has used visual effects created through generative artificial intelligence (AI) in one of its original series — the Argentine science fiction production The Eternaut, the BBC reported.

The platform’s co-CEO Ted Sarandos stated that AI was used to create a scene involving a building collapse, which allowed the team to complete the effect ten times faster and on a significantly lower budget than traditional methods would have required.

“This scene is actually the first AI-generated final shot ever aired in an original Netflix series or film. The creators were extremely pleased with the result,” Sarandos said, emphasizing that without the technology, such a scene would have been financially unfeasible.

Generative AI remains a controversial topic in the entertainment industry. Critics voice concerns that AI uses content without the consent of its original creators and that it could replace human labor. The technology was one of the main reasons behind the Hollywood strike in 2023, during which the Actors Union demanded regulations on its use.

Meanwhile, Netflix reported a 16% increase in revenue to $11 billion for the second quarter of 2025, with profits rising from $2.1 billion to $3.1 billion. The success is partly attributed to the latest season of the South Korean hit Squid Game, which now has over 122 million views.

Experts such as Davier Yoon from the animation studio CraveFX note that the use of AI by major platforms was only a matter of time, and that new tools merely expand the range of technologies available to artists. “Ultimately, it’s not AI that decides what appears on screen, but the artist themselves,” Yoon added. | BGNES