Can AI create motion designs? Will AI replace motion designers?
These questions can’t but bother us all.
But let’s get them clear, once and for all. The answers are “Yes” for the first and “No” for the second.
The role of AI in motion design is rather collaborative than substitutional. Through machine learning (ML) algorithms, artificial intelligence offers a helping hand or, better to say, a helping “mind” curated by a designer for creating motion graphics and animations.
In fact, the market value of generative AI in animation is projected to jump from $0.9 billion to $17 billion in ten years (between 2022 and 2032).
Now, you must already be willing to learn why and how to integrate AI and ML into motion design. Let’s do that. After that, grab the best AI tools for motion designers.
Why use artificial intelligence for motion design
The top three reasons to do that are as follows.
Better ideation
Imagine you have a team of motion designers stuck on one single project. And no matter how hard you try brainstorming ideas, neither your clients nor you are satisfied with the result.
Robert Kaskel, Chief People Officer at Checkr, points out, “AI can considerably enhance the ideation process in your motion design team. Instead of having everyone ferret out one concept, you can delegate it to AI and direct your employees’ efforts to other, higher-priority tasks.”
Let’s say you need a cute cat animation but don’t know how to make the cat look charming and adorable. With generative AI, you can craft a hyper-realistic and visually stunning image with vibrant colors like here.
Need one for Valentine’s Day?
No problem. Ask AI to generate it, and voila – there you have it.
And then transform it from static to dynamic.
Automation and faster decisions
“Any manual, repetitive task in motion design – you name it; AI is after it,” says Puneet Gogia, Founder at Excel Champs. “It automates the work of motion graphics designers, so eventually they can drive smarter and faster decisions and deliver creative quality in no time.”
Artificial intelligence can automate and speed up the following processes for you:
- Generating 2D and 3D elements
- Adjusting colors
- Cropping or resizing images
- Removing objects
- Applying visual effects
- Motion tracking and rotoscoping
- Rendering and editing in real-time, etc.
High cost-saving potential
Aside from cutting hours on time-consuming tasks, AI also saves costs for motion designers and agencies in terms of efficient resource usage.
“Integrating AI into motion design, brands reduce overall expenses by optimizing resource allocation (financial and human). For example, AI can help analyze motion graphics assets and provide suggestions on allocating resources to reduce the cost typically spent on numerous redesigns,” mentions Jim Pendergast, Senior Vice President at altLINE Sobanco.
From inexpensive animated logos to long-form animated films or cartoons, artificial intelligence indeed drives cost-efficiency in the business world of motion design and animation.
In fact, DreamWorks expects AI to cut the cost of creating animated movies by 90%!
5 tips on leveraging AI and ML in motion design
Unlock the best practices and insights on using artificial intelligence and machine learning to take your motion designs to the next level and captivate your audience like never before.
Address ethical concerns
It’s not me; AI did it.
You can’t simply blame the system when something goes wrong.
What could go wrong?
The answer lies in the ethical issues of using artificial intelligence for motion graphics and animation. The most prevalent are:
Transparency
ML algorithms applied to motion design can be complex and unclear. Understanding how they use data and make design decisions is rather challenging.
Data privacy and cybersecurity
The collection of personal user information by AI raises concerns about data protection. Motion designers must have all preventive measures in place to protect users’ privacy rights and avoid data breaches.
Accessibility
AI-powered motion design can create accessibility barriers for users with disabilities. For example, ML algorithms in motion design may prioritize certain aesthetic elements that are not universally accessible.
IP rights infringement
AI systems can violate intellectual property rights. There are cases when AI uses copyrighted images to produce artwork and designs.
Biases
AI can amplify stereotypes. For instance, when given prompts, AI image generators created toys in Iraq as soldiers with guns, while attractive people were light-skinned and young.
Andrew Pierce, CEO at LLC Attorney, advises to stick to the law and maintain responsible usage of AI in motion graphic design. He says, “To avoid legal trouble, motion designers must maintain full control over the AI-generated content. It is crucial to analyze every image or animation created with AI by applying certain criteria like plagiarism or accessibility level.”
Besides, adding a human touch to the final animated piece would never be extra.
Try AI-powered animations for different purposes
If you plan to use animation techniques in marketing as a brand, you can’t miss out on this section. Discover what you can do with artificial intelligence to reanimate your website, social media, and email.
For website
When using AI for motion design, you can create engaging forms or popups and elevate user experience with UX/UI animation on your website.
For example:
Look at this amusing dog wagging its tail in the subscription form at Pet Shop.
For social media
AI animation tools can help you bring motion graphics to social media.
Why not make branded animations with AI to increase your social media reach?
For example:
Red Bull created one to celebrate Christmas. The brand animated Santa Claus drinking Red Bull.
For email
How about animated emails?
You may add AI motion design elements to your email campaigns to instantly capture customers’ attention.
For example:
Check out this animation in the email from Biossance.
Keep up with trends: invest in lip-sync animation driven by AI
One of the latest trends is lip-sync animation.
“If you run a design agency, you can invest in developing a custom AI tool to create animated lip-syncing and bring your characters to life. But that is not all. You can then resell or lease it as a white-label product to other brands and generate revenue from it,” notes Shawn Plummer, CEO at The Annuity Expert.
Consider fundraising if interested. Here’s an example. The Speech Graphics team gathered $7M in funding to build an audio-driven facial animation tool with humanized AI lip-syncing.
Not for you?
Then – explore the potential of animated ads with lip-synced characters powered by artificial intelligence to enhance your marketing campaigns.
For example:
Leya AI runs Facebook ads with animated, human-like AI characters. They lip-sync accurately while narrating customer reviews of Leya AI.
Personalize user experiences
Personalization with AI and ML solutions is one of the long-lasting design trends, and not without reason. It revolutionized the web landscape. And it is definitely worth following.
“A personalized user experience signals to your clients that you perceive them as individuals with unique needs and requirements. In turn, you gain their trust and foster a stronger bond for lifelong relationships,” explains Stephan Baldwin, Founder of Assisted Living.
Instead of a one-size-fits-all approach, you can produce animated AI content that will change depending on the person browsing your website or app.
AI can create different product animations for different customer segments in real time. It can also add individual elements to motion graphics, such as:
- Name
- Location
- Favorite color
- Health data (e.g., heart rate or step count in fitness apps), etc.
A good example would be Netflix and its movie recommendation system based on AI. Netflix tailors the website design elements appearing in front of users specifically to individual tastes based on movie-watching habits.
Run tests and analyze user feedback continuously
Take it from Volodymyr Shchegel, VP of Engineering at Clario, whose development and design teams apply this strategy to Clario’s spyware scanner. He says, “Regular tests and feedback loops are crucial for effective data-driven motion design with AI. You should track and analyze user behavior data and interactions with your AI animations. Additionally, it would be wise to leverage sentiment analysis to understand how users respond to motion graphic elements and customize your animation accordingly.”
Here’s how to collect and analyze users’ feedback about their interactions with your AI-animated content:
- A/B tests
- Usability tests
- Heatmaps
- Surveys
- Interviews
- Focus groups
- Feedback widgets
Suppose you want to focus on diversity, inclusion, and accessibility in motion design with artificial intelligence. Then, you must run inclusive design tests taking into account different diversity types to create better experiences and make animations accessible for everyone.
List of AI Tools for Motion Design
We’ve selected the most handy motion design tools and software powered by AI. Here they are.
- For generating images, icons, and 3D graphics: Gencraft, Recraft.ai, VerctorArt.ai
- For text-to-vector illustrations: Illustroke, Kittl AI, Adobe AI
- For writing after-effect scripts: ChatGPT AI
- For colors: Colourlab.ai, Colormind.io
- For lip-sync animations: Gooey.AI, iClone, Pixbim Animate Photos AI
- For converting text to animation or video: Steve.ai, Krikey.ai, NeuralFrames, Kaiber.ai
- For turning 2D into 3D: RADiCAL, LeiaPix, DeepMotion
They all offer endless possibilities for making engaging and memorable visual experiences with AI in motion graphics.
Supercharge Motion Design with AI
Motion design enhanced by AI and ML is a powerful fusion of innovation and creativity. These cutting-edge technologies help designers and animators generate extraordinary ideas, automate repetitive tasks, and save costs, among other things.
Ethical considerations must be at the forefront if you decide to push the boundaries of creativity and technology with artificial intelligence in motion design. Then, it’s also essential to make purpose-driven decisions, follow new trends, strive for personalization in UX/UI, implement regular testing, and analyze user feedback.
So, are you ready to revolutionize your motion graphics projects with the power of AI?
Find more tips, tutorials, and resources at LottieFiles to support your journey. And never do it alone! Join the LottieFiles community of creators today and shape the future of motion design together.
