Wasabi, the S3 cloud storage provider, has made a significant acquisition that is set to revolutionize cloud storage for the media industry. The company is acquiring Curio AI for its AI-powered video content indexing technology, which will enable Wasabi to offer a focused storage tier specifically designed for the entertainment and media sector.
Traditionally, Wasabi has positioned itself as a hyper-focused cloud storage provider, offering a single tier of S3 storage with no additional tiers such as deep archive or fast access offerings. However, with the acquisition of Curio AI, this is about to change as Wasabi introduces a smart video content storage tier.
The CEO of Wasabi, David Friend, emphasized the importance of detailed metadata in video archives, comparing it to a library without a card catalog. This is where AI comes in, enabling the identification of faces, logos, objects, and even specific voices within videos. Without AI, finding specific segments within vast video archives requires tedious manual effort. The acquisition of Curio AI will enable Wasabi to revolutionize media storage by leveraging advanced AI technology.
Previously, videos stored in cloud object storage could only have content metadata tags added manually, which posed a significant challenge given the massive volume of stored videos. Curio’s AI technology solves this problem by scanning videos and generating metadata about different segments, including information about people, places, events, emotions, logos, landmarks, background audio, and speech, which it can transcribe in over 50 languages. This breakthrough will enable effectively stranded video segments to be brought online and made searchable.
To lead the integration of Curio AI into Wasabi, GrayMeta CEO Aaron Edell will be joining the company as SVP for AI and Machine Learning. Edell expressed his confidence in the impact of AI-powered storage, stating that it will allow Wasabi customers to instantly find the specific content they need from millions of hours of footage, unlocking the true value of their archives. He believes this will be the most significant advancement in the storage industry since the invention of object storage.
GrayMeta, the parent company of Curio AI, will be led by Mark Gray, who is returning from retirement to take on the roles of president and CEO.
The acquisition of Curio AI by Wasabi is expected to prompt similar initiatives from other entertainment and media asset management suppliers, leading to the widespread adoption of AI-powered content metadata generation for both video and still images.
Wasabi has not disclosed the terms of the acquisition deal but plans to unveil its Curio-powered service in the spring.
This strategic move by Wasabi highlights the increasing importance of AI in the media industry and demonstrates the company’s commitment to providing innovative solutions that address the industry’s specific storage needs. With the integration of Curio AI technology, Wasabi is poised to transform the way media is stored, accessed, and utilized, opening up new possibilities for content creators, distributors, and archivists alike.
