LOS GATOS, Calif., March 6, 2026, 05:34 PST
Netflix Inc has bought InterPositive, the film-technology startup founded by Ben Affleck that develops artificial-intelligence tools for movie production, pushing the streaming company deeper into how films get made, not just how they are distributed. Financial terms were not disclosed, and Affleck will join Netflix as a senior advisor, the company said. 1
The timing matters because it comes days after Netflix walked away from the battle for Warner Bros Discovery, choosing not to chase a far bigger, pricier target. Investors cheered that restraint; Ben Barringer, head of technology research at Quilter Cheviot, called the Warner retreat a “tick in the box” for discipline. 2
It also lands as Hollywood’s stance on AI is shifting. Disney agreed in December to invest $1 billion in OpenAI and let Sora, its video generator, use characters from Star Wars, Pixar and Marvel, though unions responded cautiously and raised concerns about compensation, consent and control. 3
Netflix framed Thursday’s purchase as a creator-first bet. The company said InterPositive was built to “protect and expand creative choice”; Chief Product and Technology Officer Elizabeth Stone said the aim was to “empower storytellers, not replace them,” while Chief Content Officer Bela Bajaria said new tools should “expand creative freedom.” 4
Affleck has said the software is not designed to make synthetic actors. Instead, it is aimed at post-production — the editing and finishing work after filming — helping crews fix continuity, lighting and background problems using footage from their own shoots. 5
Competitive pressure, though, is not easing. Paramount Skydance last week won Warner Bros Discovery in a $110 billion deal after Netflix declined to raise its offer, creating a larger rival with HBO, CNN, CBS and a film library of more than 15,000 titles. 6
Netflix is hardly short on scale. The company ended 2025 with 325 million subscribers and told investors in January it expected 2026 revenue of $50.7 billion to $51.7 billion, with ad revenue set to roughly double to about $3 billion as it expands live events beyond the United States. 7
Other streamers are moving the same way on AI. Amazon MGM is building an internal AI Studio and plans a closed beta in March to test tools meant to cut costs and speed TV and film production, while saying humans will stay involved at every stage. 8
But this remains a live-wire bet. Hollywood workers are rushing to learn AI even as many fear it will cut jobs or blur authorship; if Netflix cannot show these tools help editors and directors without displacing people, the push could trigger the same resistance that has followed AI across the business. 9
