License videos to AI companies: routes and what to check
The short answer
A business licenses videos to AI companies through a marketplace like Troveo or Protege, which license footage to AI labs. Bloomberg reported buyers pay $1 to $4 per minute. Troveo prefers 1080p or 4K footage you fully own. Settle releases for everyone on camera first.
Video is the kind of business content with the clearest buyers. Everything below is the platforms describing themselves unless a source is named.
Which companies buy videos for AI training?
The footage goes to AI labs and model builders. Troveo says it licenses to AI labs, and an interview write-up says OpenAI, Google Gemini, Anthropic and others need this kind of material (Media and the Machine).
Most businesses never deal with a lab directly. A marketplace handles clearing, annotation and the license.
What does each route ask for?
Troveo asks for content you fully own or have rights to, with 1080p or 4K preferred, clear audio and well-shot footage. It sets no minimum on its page, and processing takes 1 to 2 weeks. Its own page says payment is a royalty each time content is used.
Protege lists broadcasters, producers and distributors who own content outright or control it under broad rights. It describes a revenue share and publishes no percentage.
micro1 runs a separate program for new footage. It asks companies with at least 20 employees to film first-person video of hands-on work, and it states no pay amount.
YouTube has a third-party training setting for business channels too, and it is off by default. YouTube says it is not facilitating payments between those AI companies and channel owners.
What if your business owns a stock photo or video library?
A business that owns a stock library of photos or clips can license it through a marketplace, the same way as other footage. Protege lists producers and distributors who own content outright, and Troveo asks for content you fully own.
Upload platforms work differently. Wirestock's terms enroll each upload in its dataset deals program with no opt-out, and the license survives for content already provided, so read any platform's terms before your team uploads the library.
Check model and property releases before any license, because the people and brands in a picture hold rights of their own.
What do buyers pay for video?
Bloomberg's January 2025 figure of $1 to $4 a minute (as repeated by The Star) is a buyer price. No source states what share reaches the business that owns the footage.
What Troveo publishes about its split is on Troveo's revenue share.
What rights should you settle first?
Footage your business owns may still show other people or use other people's work. Check who appears in it (staff, clients, guests), who holds their releases and who owns any music or branded sets.
Our guide to licensing your business's content walks through consent for members, clients and guests. Read the rights check, too.
Talk to a privacy or commercial lawyer in your state before you sign. No outcome is promised.
micro1 may pay us a referral fee if a company we introduce goes ahead with it. How we are paid
Vaultfish helps you run the process. We are not lawyers and this is not legal advice. If you need counsel who knows this area, we can point you to one. Ask for a referral
