How AI Became the Backbone of Video Compression

NETINT's 2026 survey of 286 professionals finds AI central to encoding, with content-aware methods projected to grow 77% this year.

24 Jul 2026

Artificial intelligence is becoming a standard part of video encoding, with 60 per cent of industry professionals using AI-driven workflows, according to NETINT’s 2026 State of Video Encoding Report.

The survey of 286 encoding professionals found that content-aware encoding  which adjusts compression according to the characteristics of individual videos or scenes is expected to grow 77 per cent this year. Mark Donnigan, head of strategic marketing at NETINT, described the change as a move from AI as a supporting tool to AI as “core encoding intelligence”.

Large video platforms have already incorporated the technology into their infrastructure. Mux and Cloudflare use AI in per-title and per-scene encoding, with the article reporting cost reductions of between 25 and 40 per cent.

For streaming businesses, the main attraction is lower computing and data costs. Per-scene encoding varies the amount of data allocated according to the complexity of the content, reducing unnecessary bandwidth while seeking to maintain picture quality. Lower infrastructure costs can also leave operators with more resources for content and platform development.

Viewers may benefit from shorter loading times and more consistent streaming across different devices and network conditions. The technology is also becoming more accessible to smaller operators as AI tools mature and hardware costs decline.

Cost pressures are reinforcing the shift. Research published by NewscastStudio at the start of 2026 identified cost control and AI deployment as two strategic priorities for streaming vendors. NETINT’s survey suggests those priorities are increasingly reflected in encoding infrastructure.

Further adoption will depend on whether operators can sustain the reported savings as AI-based encoding moves beyond larger platforms. The projected growth in content-aware techniques indicates that encoding investment is likely to remain focused on reducing delivery costs while maintaining video quality.