iQIYI is moving AI to the center of its content pipeline. In an interview with Bloomberg, founder Gong Yu said that within five years, most video content shown on the platform will be generated by AI. At the same time, the Chinese streaming company has begun its largest corporate restructuring since it was founded in 2010.
Nadou Pro is built to cover nearly the full production stack
At its annual content event, iQIYI introduced Nadou Pro, describing it as China’s first professional film and television AI agent. According to the company’s positioning, the tool spans most key stages of production, from script generation and storyboard design to final rendering, bringing multiple steps into one software system.
Gong Yu said iQIYI plans to turn its video app and website into a social media platform centered on AI content, with Nadou Pro serving as the technical core of that shift. On the model side, Bloomberg reported that the software uses AI models from Alibaba, ByteDance, and Kuaishou. An international version connects to Google Veo 3.1.
Social video app launched alongside first batch of 16 AI-made films
iQIYI also unveiled a social video app at the same event. The report described it as targeting the gap left after OpenAI shut down Sora, its video generation product. The first batch includes 16 films made with Nadou, covering science fiction and animation. The company said it expects to release its first commercially successful AI-generated film this summer.
To attract creators, iQIYI is offering an extra 20% share of advertising and membership revenue to AI creators. The move is aimed at building an early supply of AI-native content on the platform.
Estimated Q1 revenue fell 13% as pressure builds on long-form video
The push comes as the core business faces strain. Bloomberg cited financial data showing that iQIYI’s first-quarter revenue is estimated to have declined 13% year over year. Douyin’s short-video ecosystem has kept taking user time and advertising budgets from long-form video platforms. iQIYI, Youku, and Tencent Video still define the sector, but the growth pattern has changed.
Outside its streaming business, iQIYI has been opening other fronts. The report said the company filed for an IPO in Hong Kong last month, while it is already listed on Nasdaq in the US. It has also opened an indoor theme park in Yangzhou, a move seen by outside observers as an effort to find cash flow beyond streaming.