Top 10 Most Popular AIGC Tools of 2023: Exploring Nearly 200 Billion Yuan Investment in the AIGC Sector

Since 2023, generative AI technologies, particularly ChatGPT, have taken center stage in the tech industry. Rapid advancements in AI are transforming traditional sectors such as agriculture, manufacturing, and information science, profoundly impacting society and potentially boosting GDP growth in China.

The influence of AI spans various stakeholders—from investors and entrepreneurs to unicorns, corporations, academia, and filmmakers. A recent Gartner report indicates that over 80% of businesses plan to integrate AIGC (Artificial Intelligence Generated Content) APIs and models into their operations, a dramatic rise from less than 5% earlier this year. Furthermore, AIGC is projected to significantly contribute to the global digital economy, potentially increasing global GDP by 7%, nearing $7 trillion over the next decade, and enhancing global labor productivity by 1.5 percentage points per year.

Investment in the AIGC sector has skyrocketed in 2023, with PitchBook reporting global funding at $23.2 billion as of mid-October—a staggering 250.2% increase from 2022. This surge has spawned over 1,500 startups focused on AIGC, leading to innovative tools and solutions that boost content generation efficiency and support personalized creative processes.

Here are ten prominent AI tools and products that emerged in 2023, illustrating how large language models (LLMs) and AIGC technologies are revolutionizing our lives:

1. ChatGPT and DALL·E 3: OpenAI's ChatGPT, launched in November 2022, quickly attracted over a million users within five days and continues to engage more than 100 million users weekly. Its latest upgrade, GPT-4, features enhanced capabilities, including integration with DALL·E 3 for image generation and editing, driving OpenAI’s revenue growth.

2. Midjourney: This leading AIGC application allows users to create images from natural language prompts on Discord. Since its launch, Midjourney has experienced rapid growth, attracting millions of users and generating significant revenue.

3. Stable Diffusion: Developed by Stability AI, this open-source model drives text-to-image generation and has gained substantial attention alongside ChatGPT, further fueling interest in AIGC.

4. Runway: An online video editing platform, Runway utilizes AI to provide collaborative and efficient content creation tools. It has already launched several AI-driven features and secured considerable funding.

5. Notion AI: Merging note-taking, project management, and collaboration capabilities with AI, Notion AI provides significant efficiencies for both students and professionals.

6. HeyGen: Renowned for deepfake technology, HeyGen has achieved remarkable popularity, delivering impressive voiceovers and surpassing $1 million in ARR within just seven months.

7. Replica Studios: This AI voice generation service offers a diverse library of digital voice actors, streamlining audio production across various media formats.

8. 3DFY.ai: This innovative platform utilizes AIGC to generate high-quality 3D models from text inputs, significantly reducing production costs and expediting the model creation process.

9. DreaMoving: Created by Alibaba, this cutting-edge AI tool generates realistic dance videos from face photos and text prompts, heralding a new era in personalized video content creation.

10. AlphaCode 2: Launched by Google, this tool boosts coding efficiency by generating accurate code snippets based on user inputs, representing a significant advancement in software development.

In summary, these ten noteworthy AIGC products highlight the diverse applications emerging from both established companies and startups. Continued exploration of these tools reveals their potential to enhance productivity and reshape how we create and engage with technology. Industry leaders stress the importance of embracing these applications to unlock the full potential of generative AI across various sectors.