AI-Generated Videos and Deepfakes: A Technical Primer

Artificial intelligence, specially deep learning (DL)-based computer vision algorithms has been revolutionizing video generation, enabling the creation of realistic videos through advanced algorithms specially through DL models. These AI-generated videos bring opportunities in many industries and individual content creators but also bring major threats to humanity for misuse as deepfakes. This tutorial paper overviews the methodologies driving AI-generated videos and its underlying key technologies. It briefly explores the foundational roles of Generative Adversarial Networks, Diffusion Model, and Autoencoders and their backbone DL algorithms in synthesizing video content. The paper also briefly discussed the opportunities of generated videos as well as potential threats in the era of deepfakes. It also discussed significant challenges, ethical considerations, and future directions for enhancing control and creativity in AI video generation. The content will be updated in successive versions of the paper from time to time as the state-of-the-art progresses.