Minute Media Acquires VideoVerse: An AI Play for Sports Content

09/09/2025 Business

Minute Media, a name you might recognize from brands like Sports Illustrated and The Players’ Tribune, is making a big move into AI. They're acquiring VideoVerse, an Indian AI startup that's been making waves in the sports broadcasting world. It seems like everyone wants a piece of the AI pie these days, and Minute Media isn't about to be left behind. I think it's a smart play, especially with how much video content we consume now.

VideoVerse, founded in 2016, has been focusing on using AI to help broadcasters quickly pull out the best moments from sports footage and create engaging content. I mean, think about it – how many times have you wanted to see just the highlights of a game without watching the whole thing? That's what VideoVerse does, and they do it well.

Their client list is pretty impressive, including names like the Indian Premier League, FIFA+, and Nippon TV. They've even developed AI tools that can detect things like smoking in movies, which helps with content regulation. In the beginning, the company developed different AI tools, including one to detect smoking and drinking, which was helpful for the Indian sensor board to flag certain scenes for movie certification. It also worked on object identification and deployed that tech for e-commerce sites for identifying items in a video.

While the exact price tag isn't public, whispers suggest the deal is in the same ballpark as VideoVerse's last valuation of around $200 million to $250 million. That's a significant investment, showing how serious Minute Media is about this AI push.

Minute Media's CEO, Asaf Peled, calls this their biggest acquisition yet. They've grown a lot through mergers and acquisitions, bringing in brands like The Players’ Tribune and Mental Floss. This move seems to be all about using VideoVerse's AI tech to distribute content more effectively and, of course, make more money through ads. It makes sense; if you can create more engaging content, you can attract more viewers, which leads to more ad revenue.

According to Prateek Sharma, VideoVerse’s chief strategy officer, they've recently rolled out new AI tools that let clients set rules for automatically generating content. Imagine setting a rule to automatically create a highlight reel of every three-pointer a certain player scores in a basketball game. Pretty neat, right? They've also added AI-powered translation, which can help sports reach a global audience.

Minute Media wants to use VideoVerse’s platform to create more content and then use their own distribution network to get it out there. They're also aiming to boost ad revenue. Essentially, they want to offer a complete package to customers – AI-powered content creation, distribution, and monetization. It’s a pretty comprehensive strategy.

Peled mentioned that they're eyeing more U.S.-based leagues, hoping to get them on board with this highlight-generating platform. With more and more people watching content on their phones, especially shorter, more engaging clips, it seems like a smart bet.

I think this acquisition highlights a growing trend: the increasing importance of AI in content creation and distribution. If Minute Media can successfully integrate VideoVerse’s tech, they could be in a strong position to capitalize on the changing media landscape.