Core Viewpoint - The anime industry is at a technological crossroads due to the rapid integration of AI, facing a significant supply-demand imbalance while exploring AI's potential in production processes [1][3]. Group 1: Current State of the Anime Industry - The anime industry is experiencing a historical supply-demand split, with top studios having schedules booked two years in advance, leading to a production bottleneck [3][6]. - The global anime market is growing at over 10% annually, driven by a younger demographic that has grown up with anime, including Gen Z and Gen Alpha [6][8]. - Production in the anime industry remains highly labor-intensive, with 30%-40% still relying on traditional hand-drawn methods, indicating a low level of industrialization and digitalization [8][9]. Group 2: AI Integration Paradigms - Three main types of companies are emerging in the AI-anime space: traditional studios looking to enhance efficiency with AI, disruptive startups rethinking production processes around AI, and hybrid models using AI as an assistant [9][17][24]. - Traditional studios are exploring AI to optimize specific production steps, such as in-between frame generation, but face challenges with stability and quality [10][12]. - Disruptive companies like KAKA Creation are attempting to create content primarily through AI, but often struggle with maintaining the artistic quality and exaggerated aesthetics typical of traditional anime [17][19]. Group 3: Challenges and Future Prospects - The current limitations of AI in generating stable and coherent video content pose significant challenges, with most models generating videos of only 10-20 seconds [32][34]. - The anime industry faces ethical dilemmas regarding AI-generated content, particularly concerning voice acting and the potential displacement of human creators [36][37]. - There is a growing interest in how AI can enhance creative possibilities, such as complex costume designs that were previously too labor-intensive to produce [28][29].