xAI, the company founded by Elon Musk, has announced the acquisition of the startup Hotshot, which specializes in developing tools for video generation using AI. This deal may indicate xAI’s intention to develop its own video generation models to compete with Sora by OpenAI and Veo 2 by Google.
Some news – We're excited to announce that @HotshotSupport has been acquired by @xAI 🚀
— Aakash (@aakashsastry) March 17, 2025
Over the past 2 years we've built 3 video foundation models as a small team – Hotshot-XL, Hotshot Act One, and Hotshot.
Training these models has given us a look into how global education,… pic.twitter.com/W4rmYUxnMR
According to Hotshot CEO Aakash Sastry, over the past two years the team has created three foundational video models — Hotshot-XL, Hotshot Act One, and Hotshot. These models could transform approaches to education, entertainment, communication, and productivity in the coming years. Now, Hotshot plans to continue developing its technologies on the world’s largest cluster, Colossus, as part of xAI.
Founded in New York, Hotshot started by developing tools for creating and editing photos using AI, but later shifted to text-to-video models. The startup attracted investments from well-known investors such as Lahee Grooms, Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, and SV Angel.
Elon Musk has previously hinted at plans to create video generation tools within xAI. During a broadcast in January, he stated that he expects the release of the “Grok Video” model within a few months. This could be a significant step in the development of video generation technologies and expand opportunities for users in various fields.
