Hollywood Visual Effects Provider Gets $200M to Develop AI-Powered CGI Tools

The DNEG Group, which provides visual effects technologies for some of Hollywood’s biggest movies, has received $200 million in a strategic investment from investors based in Abu Dhabi.

DNEG Group consists of several companies, including the newly launched Brahma, which is developing AI-powered CGI tools to ease the creation of visual effects. Brahma’s AI creator solution would generate photo-real visual effects, leveraging more than 25 years of visual effects (VFX) data.

The investment by United Al Saqer Group (UASG), brings the company’s valuation to more than $2 billion.

The company said the investment will accelerate its AI creator tool development efforts.

“Our partnership with UASG, the launch of Brahma and the success of our content creation platform are all being fuelled by the power of our technology,” said Namit Malhotra, DNEG’s chair and CEO. “We are redefining our business model as a leader in top-end solutions across the world, raising the bar in storytelling by using the latest technology and creative capabilities.”

DNEG has worked on Hollywood movies including “Oppenheimer,” “Blade Runner 2049” and “Interstellar.” The company was the lead VFX partner for the recent science fiction blockbuster “Dune: Part Two.”

Headquartered in London, DNEG Group companies include Prime Focus Technologies, which provides cloud-based software and AI technology and Prime Focus Studios, which handles content and intellectual property investments.

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The company said it wants to “evolve” from purely providing visual effects services to becoming a “sector-agnostic content production and AI-powered technology partner.”

Movie budgets continue to rise, with VFX-heavy movies costing studios millions as they have to cover expenses for animators and editors. The latest “Mission Impossible” movie, “Dead Reckoning Part One” has seen production costs exceed $300 million due to the expensive stunts and effects adding up.

AI CGI tools like the one in development by Brahma would help moviemakers bring down spiraling budgets while helping to create realistic effects.

Prabhu Narasimhan, Brahma’s executive chair, said the company aims to help studios “translate their imagination to screen faster, cheaper and better.”

“In the coming months, we will add to the leadership team of Brahma, fusing top technology and AI talent with visual effects creatives to make Brahma available to everyone with a story to tell,” Narasimhan said.

Following the investment from UASG, DNEG will open an office and visual experience hub in Abu Dhabi to establish a content production ecosystem in the Middle East.

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UASG’s Nabil Kobeissi and Edouard Zard will join DNEG’s board of directors.

“This strategic partnership not only turbocharges the development of Brahma, the group’s ground-breaking AI-powered CGI creator but also, under [Malhotra]’s leadership, demonstrates Abu Dhabi’s positioning as a global epicenter for content creation and distribution,” said Nabil Kobeissi, UASG’s CEO.

“By establishing a new visual experience hub in Abu Dhabi, we are creating numerous job opportunities and enhancing our ecosystem that supports high-tech industries and creative excellence,” said Ahmed Jasim Al Zaabi, chair of the Abu Dhabi Department of Economic Development. “This move reaffirms Abu Dhabi’s status as a prime destination for groundbreaking investments, visionary enterprises and a thriving environment where creativity and technology converge."