During an interview with Forbes Crunchyroll CEO Rahul Purini was blunt: the platform does not intend to use artificial intelligence AI ) in any creative aspect of its anime. This includes both the studio's work and the voice actors' performances, which he considers an essential part of each series' narrative construction.
The statement is particularly noteworthy because, last year, the same executive had expressed interest in using AI to speed up subtitle and transcription processes, as he revealed to The Verge . At the time, the proposal was to make international releases faster and simultaneous with those in Japan—something that drew much criticism from fans.
The backlash on social media was immediate. Many fans made it clear that anime should remain a human-made artistic expression, free from the interference of automated technologies. The case of AI-generated art in the Studio Ghibli only reinforced the debate over the value of manual labor and copyright.
Purini now reinforces that AI is only used in internal functions, such as recommendation systems and personalized search, completely leaving out anime content.
Meanwhile, other platforms are moving in the opposite direction. Amazon Prime Video is already testing AI-powered dubbing, and Netflix is investing heavily in generative AI tools, including anime scenarios and voice-over technologies.
For now, Crunchyroll has chosen a more cautious path — and one much closer to what fans truly value.
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Source: Forbes
