AI Is Changing the Economics of Entertainment, Says Sanket ‘Don’ Vanzara

Sanket “Don” Vanzara, a veteran in the entertainment industry, is urging the sector to reconsider its focus amid the rise of artificial intelligence. Contrary to fears about machines supplanting creative professionals, Vanzara argues the true disruption lies in how AI is reshaping the economics of entertainment production.

Traditionally, producing high-quality content required significant infrastructure, capital, specialized teams, time, and access – barriers that created a natural advantage for established players. However, AI technologies are rapidly reducing these cost and time requirements across development, pre-production, visualization, post-production, localization, editing, and content adaptation. As these efficiencies become more widespread, the sheer ability to produce content becomes less distinguishing.

Vanzara believes that when production capability becomes abundant, the key differentiator will shift from the ability to create content to knowing what is truly worth producing. Ideas, intellectual property, creative judgement, audience understanding, and the ability to identify stories with genuine potential will become more crucial. With the explosive growth of content, the challenge will no longer merely be about creating more but discerning what deserves creation, investment, and scaling.

For entertainment companies, this may mean moving away from being defined primarily by production capacity. The strongest firms of the future could be those that build valuable intellectual property, understand audience behavior, anticipate cultural shifts early, and leverage technology to swiftly move strong creative ideas forward.

Vanzara emphasizes that AI should be viewed as an enabler, not a replacement for creativity. While technology can accelerate production processes, reduce experimentation costs, enable multiple content versions, and facilitate cross-market distribution, it cannot replicate human instincts. These instincts include understanding character significance, storytelling connection, and audience appeal – aspects machines find difficult to grasp.

As generative tools become more accessible, the true advantage will shift to those who can effectively use technology around stronger ideas. For Vanzara, the future of entertainment lies in putting technology at the service of creativity, allowing human judgment to complement what machines cannot replicate. The future is about leveraging technology to enhance human creativity rather than battling technology against talent.