Can AI content be truly original? CJ ENM says yes

Baek Hyun-jung, Head of AI Business & Production of CJ ENM, speaks during the "2025 CJ ENM CULTURE TALK: K-Content Meets AI" at its Talent Studio in Sangam-dong, western Seoul. Courtesy of CJ ENM

Celebrating its 30th anniversary, entertainment powerhouse CJ ENM laid out an ambitious roadmap Monday to integrate artificial intelligence (AI) across its creative operations and premiered an original animation series created entirely with AI.

The company hosted the "2025 CJ ENM CULTURE TALK: K-Content Meets AI" at its Talent Studio in Sangam-dong, western Seoul, sharing how the company envisions using AI to transform its future content creation.

The speakers of the Monday event emphasized that it has become "more critical than ever" for entertainment companies like CJ ENM to develop AI capabilities tailored to a global audience.

"We are currently applying AI across the entire content value chain, including planning, production, distribution and marketing to expand AI content production across genres and formats, allowing us to secure next-generation intellectual property (IP)," said Shin Keun-sup, chief strategy officer at CJ ENM.

Noting the company's ambitions to become a global top AI studio, Shin added that the company aims to develop tech-savvy talents for the upcoming generation.

"At the same time, we're nurturing a new generation of creators equipped with AI technology, business and content planning expertise, and expanding our AI team to position CJ ENM as a global AI studio," he said.

The official poster for "Cat Biggie," an artificial intelligence-powered animation series created by CJ ENM / Courtesy of CJ ENM

AI, but original

During the event, the company demonstrated its proprietary AI production tools, including Cinematic AI, a system optimized for narrative content like films and dramas.

Unlike traditional processes requiring separate tools, Cinematic AI integrates image, video, sound and voice, and automatically processes 3D characters and environments to produce consistent, coherent visuals, which has remained a challenge for AI-generated videos.

CJ ENM also introduced AI Script, an agent system that analyzes consumer needs and market trends to help discover promising new IP. Unlike big tech models, the company said its tool offers a more nuanced understanding of literary language, allowing deeper analysis of worldwide content marketability.

The entertainment company also showcased "Cat Biggie," a nonverbal, in-house animated series made entirely with its AI tools. The series, which follows a chubby grey cat that unexpectedly becomes a father to a baby chick, consists of 30 two-minute episodes and is set for global release on YouTube in July.

The company revealed it took a team of just six people five months to complete the project, labeling it as "notable in speed and scale."

Baek Hyun-jung, head of AI Business & Production, led the planning and production of the series.

Scenes from "Cat Biggie," an artificial intelligence-powered animation series created by CJ ENM / Courtesy of CJ ENM

"The key challenge was controlling and expressing the dynamic movements unique to animation," Baek explained. "We used our tool, Cinematic AI, to convert the characters into 3D data and train the production system accordingly. This allowed us to achieve a high level of completeness in the final output."

Building on its animation debut, CJ ENM plans to expand AI-powered production into different films and dramas, also set to drop later this year.

Baek also acknowledged the existing skepticism about AI-powered art and whether using AI to create content could be seen as truly original.

"There are, in fact, concerns about AI technology. We're seeing an overflow of images that anyone can create. But every technological advancement comes with its share of worries. And in the end, we believe these discussions will help expand the market and advance regulations and policies," Baek said.

"What AI content means to us is closely tied to CJ ENM's goal of discovering different stories and delivering these narratives to audiences. But the Korean content does have its limits ... By adopting AI, we see an opportunity to create content without material or budget constraints."

The event also featured a policy talk with attorney Im Sang-Hyeok, partner at Shin & Kim LLC, who underscored the need for clearer industry guidelines and legal frameworks for the upcoming AI era.

"It is crucial to establish a foundation to advance the global AI content market," Im said. "This includes meticulous industry guidelines, legal frameworks for copyright and data protection and the dedicated government departments to support the field."