In 2025, the estimated annual output value of China's micro drama industry is close to 90 billion yuan, almost doubling compared to 2024; The number of AI short dramas is growing rapidly, and the net profit margin of some types of AI short dramas exceeds 50%... The reporter learned from the recent 2025 Shanghai Fine Short Drama Industry Promotion Conference that China's short drama industry is showing a high-speed growth trend, among which AI short dramas are developing rapidly and their profitability has attracted market attention. Industry insiders predict that in the next two to three years, AI short dramas are expected to recreate a market worth billions of yuan, and industry standards will also be strengthened simultaneously.

The fastest rise of AI short dramas is producing one per day

What is the world depicted in the Classic of Mountains and Seas? What secrets did the ancient Shu state, which created the Sanxingdui civilization, hide? If Emperor Gaozong of Song was possessed by the God of War, could the Southern Song Dynasty recover the mountains and rivers? These imaginative stories were previously difficult to produce into films due to cost or technological limitations; Nowadays, with the maturity of AI video tools such as Sora, Jimeng, and Keling, even the most imaginative AI short dramas can be mass-produced.

Short dramas are very similar to ancient opera pieces, where the most enjoyable parts of the drama are presented separately. In the future, short dramas will not only be driven by fans and commerce, but also by expression and technology, allowing more forces to integrate and create better works, "said Professor Bao Lei of Shanghai Theatre Academy.

Several industry insiders told reporters that although the development of short dramas has been going on for several years, 2025 can be regarded as the "first year of AI short dramas". Liu Zun, research director of the DataEye Research Institute, a short play data platform, told the reporter that the analysis of the monthly top 5000 short plays of Tiktok shows that only 4 AI generated short plays were listed in January, 69 in October and 217 in November. This is only a statistical analysis of micro dramas generated entirely by AI, and AI assisted animated dramas are not included. ”

The reporter learned that AI short dramas are generally divided into the following categories based on the level of visual refinement: realistic AI simulation human dramas, AI animated dramas similar to comics, and humorous emoji animated dramas with simple craftsmanship and imaginative content.

The cost and production cycle of different types of AI short dramas vary greatly. ”Ruihe Film and Television founder Luo Shihai, who focuses on creating AI short dramas, told reporters that the cost per minute for humorous emoji anime is about 50 to 150 yuan, for AI anime it is about 1000 to 3000 yuan, and for some AI simulation short dramas it can reach 10000 yuan per minute or even higher. At present, a team of 6 people can produce a humorous emoji anime series every 3 days, a top team can produce one drama every day, and a team of 15 people needs about 4 weeks to produce one AI anime series.

According to the latest report from the Shanghai Network Audiovisual Industry Association, funny emoji anime has become the absolute mainstay of anime supply in the current market with lower production costs and shorter production cycles, accounting for over 80% of new anime genres.

Despite the higher cost of AI comics, their popularity rate is also higher. According to DataEye data, out of the top 50 most viewed anime series in October, 11 were funny emoji anime series, while the rest were AI anime series.

In contrast, AI reality shows currently have lower production volumes due to high costs, long cycles, and greater technological uncertainty.

Shanghai Jingming Culture Media Co., Ltd. is producing a large-scale AI simulation human drama "The Return of Sanxingdui". The company's general manager, Hu Yuming, told reporters that AI simulation short dramas are suitable for grand mythological scenes and wonders without real reference objects. The advantages of AI in visual atmosphere rendering can be fully demonstrated, and the audience's tolerance will also be higher. So the team chose Sanxingdui and Shanhaijing themes to test the waters of AI simulation dramas. In contrast, scripts with realistic themes and those that require delicate facial expressions and actions are not suitable for AI simulation dramas.

Capital chasing new trends, listed companies actively layout

The profitability of AI short dramas is quite impressive. Industry insiders told reporters that the cost of a funny emoji anime is about 20000 to 30000 yuan, but the net profit margin can generally reach over 50%. At present, AI short dramas are in a market expansion period of rapid production, rapid release, and rapid sales.

As a result, many short drama companies have started to experiment with AI short dramas. The relevant person in charge of the well-known short drama production team Tinghua Island told reporters that recently Tinghua Island has transformed and produced two AI short dramas based on live action short dramas to better reuse and activate high-quality scripts, and also hopes to use AI technology to attract young users.

Xia Li, the editor in chief of the short drama and founder of the startled bird and flying fish cultural media, told reporters that he has started to participate in the script writing and production of funny emoji anime. Currently, the profit effect of AI short dramas has emerged, and many peers have flooded into this market.

Listed companies have also begun to layout the AI short drama market. In November, the AI short drama "749 Secret Files: Qinling Evil Rain" produced by a company under Xinju Network exceeded 10 million views within 19 hours of its launch, causing fluctuations in stock prices.

According to the third quarter report of Bona Film, its self-developed "Boca One Click AI Short Drama" product is officially open for professional creators to apply for use. AI short drama works generated by the "Boka One Button AI Short Drama" product have been broadcast in the company's WeChat video account, Tiktok official account and other matrices. The AI native animated movie 'Sanxingdui: Future Memories' has entered the final stage of production, and the review work is also being carried out simultaneously.

Market size hits billions of yuan, industry regulation is about to tighten

The industry is generally optimistic about the development trend of AI short dramas. Liu Zun expressed that he is generally optimistic about the commercial prospects of AI short dramas, and more optimistic about the overseas prospects of AI short dramas in China. Data shows that 55% of overseas users are willing to pay for AI assisted short dramas, and 49% of overseas users are willing to pay for pure AI short dramas. The total revenue of overseas micro dramas for the whole year of 2025 is expected to exceed 4.5 billion US dollars.

Luo Shihai told reporters that the supply of AI short dramas has not yet started to increase. According to the current speed of technological development and commercial effects, it is expected that the supply of AI short dramas will have tens of times the growth space, and it is expected to present a market worth billions of yuan in the next two to three years.

Many cities have already used AI short dramas as a new industrial lever. The reporter learned from the meeting that cities such as Shanghai, Hangzhou, and Zhengzhou are actively cultivating the short drama industry. With the rise of AI short dramas, first tier cities with high production costs are trying to seize the opportunity of technological overtaking.

Continuous talent supply is the key to the sustained development of AI short dramas. AI short drama director Xu Dapeng said that he has interviewed more than 200 people so far, but less than 10 people are truly suitable to participate in AI short drama production. Learning to master AI and transform thinking is a very painful process. ”

Jiang Lan, Senior Vice President of Gouzheng Technology, told reporters that AI short dramas have created new technical and creative positions, and the surge in demand for "AI+content" composite talents in the market is also driving educational institutions and vocational training to offer related courses. In the long run, the market will gradually form a professional talent ecosystem centered around AI content production.

While technology is rapidly developing, industry insiders generally believe that high-quality content and directorial thinking are still crucial for AI short dramas, which is also where AI is difficult to replace humans. Luo Shihai said that if the script is not good, no matter how good the AI technology is. When AI technology is mature enough, a screenwriter and a director may be able to produce a work.

With the sharp increase in production of AI short dramas, their content security has raised concerns within the industry. Several attendees told reporters that some AI short dramas currently have issues with borderline content and direction, and some poorly made AI short dramas also convey negative values. At present, there are no detailed rules for the management of AI short dramas. The industry mainly refers to the management tips for animated short dramas released by the Network Audiovisual Department of the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television on September 8th.

However, multiple industry insiders mentioned above have revealed that more specific and strict AI short drama management regulations are expected to be introduced in the first half of 2026, which may include relevant review and segmentation rules to promote the refinement of AI short drama content and the healthy development of the industry.