AI video maker Pika Labs has joined the recent flurry of new and upgraded tools by releasing Pika 1.5, a refreshed model with a bunch of new features. These visual effects, or “Pikaffects,” as the company calls them, come about a year after Pika 1.0’s initial debut. The timing of the release, right after rival models like Runway Gen-3, Hotshot and Luma Labs’ Dream Machine 1.5, suggests that the competition to dominate AI videos is far from over, even as people await a wider release of OpenAI’s Sora. model.
Pika 1.5 increases photorealism and gives users more camera control, with some pretty impressive results. But the Pikaffects are definitely the showstoppers, with bizarre changes in physics that seem to blend into the reality of the video, even though they would be impossible to film in real life. A new button in the Pika interface opens the list of options for what to do with objects in the video. So maybe you want to see a dog blow up like a balloon and float away, a castle melt like butter, a sandwich get crushed, a car explode, or a kitten get squashed. You can do all of the above using buttons with the appropriate verbs on them. It doesn’t come out of nowhere either. The buttons cause hands to come in and squash the cat, or a hydraulic press to crush the sandwich.
The most bizarre button takes an object and ‘Cake-ify it’, meaning the subject becomes a cake that looks like something else, like the popular meme and TV show. As with the other Pikaffects, the cake-ify option leads to someone cutting the object with a knife to reveal it is cake. All object identification is done automatically, so you don’t have to spend a lot of time manually editing the effect into place, as shown in the video below.
Sry, we forgot our password. PIKA 1.5 IS HERE. With more realistic movements, large screenshots and stunning Pik effects that break the laws of physics, there’s more to love about Pika than ever before. Try it. pic.twitter.com/lOEVZIRygxOctober 1, 2024
Pika Power
Pika affects aren’t the only upgrade made possible in Pika 1.5. The five-second video clips are much better at realistic movements on foot and in vehicles. The motion update also extends to the camera, with new controls allowing you to simulate The Matrix the Bullet Time effect from movies, along with setting the camera to Crane Down, Dolly Left and Pan Swipe. These updates aim to give creators more control over their videos, giving them a professional, cinematic look without the need for in-depth technical knowledge.
Pika’s efforts are impressive, but the company is facing a growing number of rivals, with existing competitors eager to offer their own take on AI video creation. Still, Pikaffects are an unexpected addition to the variety available and could help Pika Labs carve out a niche of its own.
If you want to try out Pika 1.5, it’s available to both free and paid Pika users, with limits for the free tier. You can also switch back to Pika 1.0 if you want. The older version has its own special features that are not yet available in the new model, such as the AI sound effects and Lip Sync features. Subscribing will give you greater access to all models and their features, but while subscription prices are the same, the credit cost for a clip has increased to 15 credits. You can buy more or earn credit prizes through Pika’s community challenges.