What Is Sora For? | Commentary [Video]

On the “featured” tab of its new Sora video generator, OpenAI highlights a bunch of standout AI video clips. There’s a panda riding the subway, an alien smoking a cigarette, a paper boat navigating a stormy sea, and a golden statue winking at you.

The videos are stunning outputs of a marvelous new technology, but who knows what they’re for. Eye catching and creative but too low quality to insert into a commercial production, Sora clips exist in a state of liminality. Yes, the product understands at least some physics, and AI video may be the tech breakthrough of the year. But like many generative AI products so far, it’s not entirely clear what we’re supposed to do with it.

AI video will certainly improve, but Sora and its counterparts seem high on cool factor and low on utility, at least for now. The problem: There is no natural user. …