AI on the Lot, Amazon MGM Studios' conference, has grown from a half-day gathering of 600 attendees in 2023 to a two-day event pulling nearly 2,500. The Culver City backlot conference delivered the usual techno-optimism this year. Yet Hollywood insiders remain divided on whether AI is the future or the next passing trend.
Amazon MGM Studios served as title sponsor, with Prime Video and AWS backing the event. Enthusiasts spoke of breakthrough innovations and creative possibilities. But around the soundstages, skepticism runs deep.
Tech boosters see faster workflows, cost savings, and creative collaboration ahead for AI in entertainment production. Studios, producers, and creatives raise serious concerns about job displacement, creative control, and whether audiences want AI-made content.
The conference has grown sharply in three years. Studios once skeptical now send their executives. Creatives who dismissed the technology now ask hard questions. The industry is saying: "We don't fully trust this yet, but we can't ignore it."
The real story is the gap between the optimistic presentations and the worry underneath. Hollywood wants AI to serve it without replacing its workforce. Whether that's possible is what keeps executives awake.
