AI video startup Higgsfield is deepening its presence in South Korea after the country emerged as its second-largest market globally, underscoring how rapidly generative video technology is moving into one of the world’s most influential entertainment and digital-content industries.
Higgsfield said adoption in South Korea has increased by an average of 55% month over month during the past 14 months. The company also said Korea now ranks third worldwide in overall AI video creation.
To build on that momentum, Higgsfield brought its first AI feature film, “Hell Grind,” to Seoul for a private screening attended by more than 310 leaders from the country’s entertainment, technology, advertising and corporate sectors.
Executives from Korean Air, SK Telecom, KT, Cheil Worldwide, CJ ENM, MNet, SM Entertainment, SIDUS, THEBLACKLABEL and Woori Card were among the attendees, according to the company.
South Korea Emerges as a Major AI Video Market
South Korea combines advanced digital infrastructure with globally influential entertainment industries spanning K-pop, television, cinema, advertising and webtoons.
Those industries depend heavily on visual storytelling and increasingly produce content for international audiences and digital platforms. Generative AI could change production economics by allowing creators to develop concepts, scenes and marketing material faster than conventional workflows alone.
The Higgsfield South Korea expansion comes as the global AI video market is projected to grow rapidly. Grand View Research estimates the sector could reach about $42.3 billion by 2033.
The market encompasses generative AI video as well as AI-assisted editing, analysis and other technologies that automate parts of video production.
‘Hell Grind’ Tests AI Video at Feature-Film Scale
Higgsfield’s Seoul screening is notable because feature-length filmmaking remains a difficult challenge for generative AI.
While modern models can produce impressive short clips, maintaining consistent characters, environments, cinematography and narrative continuity across an entire film is considerably more complex.
“Hell Grind” is a 95-minute action-adventure feature created using generative AI. Previous reporting said the production cost approximately $500,000, with a significant portion of the budget devoted to AI computing resources.
Human filmmakers remained involved in areas including cinematography, composition, prompting and continuity, illustrating how current AI filmmaking still requires substantial creative direction.
The project provides Higgsfield with a demonstration of how generative technology could move beyond social-media clips and advertising into longer-form professional productions.
Higgsfield Expands After Rapid Global Growth
Higgsfield was founded by Alex Mashrabov, a former head of generative AI at Snap, and launched its browser-based video platform in 2025.
The company has since emerged as a major player in generative video. Earlier this year, Higgsfield raised additional funding that brought its Series A round to $130 million and valued the company at more than $1.3 billion.
Unlike companies focused primarily on developing foundational AI models, Higgsfield has concentrated on the application layer. Its platform can integrate models from different providers while offering creators tools for controlling cinematography and production workflows.
Marketing and social-media production have been important drivers of adoption, where businesses need large volumes of video content for platforms such as TikTok, Instagram and YouTube.
Korean Entertainment Could Become an AI Video Testbed
South Korea provides an attractive market for this strategy because entertainment, advertising and digital culture are deeply interconnected.
K-pop groups, streaming productions and consumer brands already operate across global platforms, creating strong demand for visual content.
AI could increasingly support storyboarding, previsualization, advertising, visual effects and other stages of production. However, broader adoption will also intensify debates over copyright, training data, employment and performers’ rights.
Higgsfield has appointed Alvin Kim as regional manager for Asia-Pacific, signaling that its Korean momentum is part of a broader regional strategy.
With Higgsfield South Korea now representing the company’s second-largest market, the country could become an important proving ground for whether AI video evolves from an experimental creator technology into mainstream infrastructure for professional entertainment.
