Vinayak Shrivastav talks about how Magnifi by VideoVerse is revamping the video content industry with AI and ML-powered technology
1. Can you give us a brief of your career before Magnifi by VideoVerse?
My background is rooted in mechanical engineering, however, after completing my MBA at London Business School, I was recruited to work for a number of successful venture capital firms and worked closely with groups in the media sector. I assisted numerous companies, including start-ups that went on to achieve great success. I experienced first-hand how slow innovation and adoption of new-age technologies was in the media sector, which prompted me to step-out and work with other like-minded and talented individuals that recognized the potential for AI and ML-led transformation in this sector.
2. How was the initial phase of setting up Magnifi by VideoVerse? What does a regular day at work look like now?
In our initial phase we were focussed on firstly understanding the problem we were trying to solve for and secondly ensuring the tech build was aligned to that. We really wanted to deep dive into the workings of the media sector and understand how things were being done. This involved activating our network and speaking to people in the industry. As we were bootstrapped, we had to ensure every penny was being put to work. The next challenge was building the right team of AI engineers, data scientists, product managers and GTM strategists. I think we have been really fortunate with people as we have retained most of the original team and each of them feels a tremendous sense of pride and ownership in what they have created with Magnifi.
If there is a regular day, it’s comprised of exploring new markets, strategizing in meetings and especially, team building. I am always inspired by the insights that our diverse mix of people brings to exploring new concepts and thought leadership ideals—and ideas.
3. Can you brief us on the unique points of your company?
We solve pain points for clients and create solutions based on their unique needs. We do not take a cookie-cutter approach. We are a people-first company, building a culture of inclusiveness. I think we are really progressive and diverse, and that encourages and inspires innovations. This is what has allowed Magnifi to bring together a robust ecosystem of video editing tools developed using the latest technologies and with a deep understanding of the customers’ specific challenges that they are looking to solve.
4. What are the salient features setting you apart from your competitors?
First, our solution requires no additional data because our AI works on one single data feed from the source and does need any additional technological set up. Our solutions are easy to implement and not cost prohibitive. And, most important, one does not need to be a digital or video editing expert to use our tools. The machine does the work for you and ensures a high degree of accuracy without disrupting existing workflows.
5. What are the technology solutions that Magnifi by VideoVerse offers?
For Enterprises, Magnifi by VideoVerse is the flagship solution that endeavors to connect viewers with real time, relevant and customized video content and make content discoverability easier. To this end, our proprietary AI models extract highlights and key moments from enterprise video content to auto-produce social ready clips. The technology renders itself seamlessly to sports, news and entertainment videos.
Other products by VideoVerse include:
For individuals, Illusto provides a cloud-based intuitive video editing tool that empowers creators, professionals and beginners to bring their impactful stories to life. Illusto offers a wide range of creative templates to match your storyline and enhance your video editing process. You can create dynamic content on the go, add personalized branding for a higher impact and publish on all social media platforms with the click of a button.
Styck is a live streaming solution to connect with audiences and maximize reach across multiple digital platforms simultaneously at the click of a button. Features include multi-streaming, video scheduling and analytic tracking.
6. How is Magnifi by VideoVerse revamping the video content industry with AI and ML-powered technology?
At Magnifi, we are evolving into a larger and stronger company as we now are a conglomerate of AI-based smart solutions. We are revolutionizing expensive and time-consuming legacy processes by driving video editing to the cloud age. Our clients are spread across all geographies, industries and age groups. Sports was our core focus initially, but now we are proud to say our technology renders itself seamlessly to entertainment and news content as well.
A recent report by CISCO shows that globally, video traffic made up for 80% of all consumer internet traffic in 2021. Today consumers and businesses want not only more relevant but also more accessible and personalised content.
Marketers cannot ignore the power of video communication and the power of a good story told through video to attract consumers.We provide the solutions to ensure higher returns on content.
Appreciating the changing environment in terms of video consumption and growing individual content creators, we offer platforms that allow for seamless editing and simulcasting options. Styck has all the evolved features that content creators need to seamlessly reach, engage, and monetize their offerings. With the dedication to making streaming easy, faster, and better for everyone, Styck is rapidly growing as a preferred platform by new and established influencers globally. The Illusto platform is also an intuitive and powerful tool to create best-in-class videos reducing go-to-market time and increasing reach, engagement and ROI for our users.
7. Could you tell us more about your team and how they support you?
The team is a very diverse mix of people from different cultures, which gives us a broad perspective and challenges us to keep innovating The founders believe in building a global community, and we have built a team on the talent and expertise we feel are best suited, wherever they are located. We can accommodate the working requirements. For example, we have a data scientist in Israel, our CPO in London, and many more people spread across India, US, UK and even Singapore. We believe that, when people feel appreciated, it comes right back to the company tenfold.
8. What are your plans for expansion and growth? Top priorities for 2022?
Going forward, our focus is to:
● Continue building the team
● Further enhance the product features, as we are constantly working to improve our products to make them as user friendly and seamless as possible
● Offer clients a holistic solution for all their video editing needs
● In addition to our offices in the U.S., Europe, Israel and India, expand to new markets like Singapore and the Middle East by the end of this year
9. What is the biggest piece of advice you could provide to company leaders about helping them fulfil the needs of their team?
Hire smart people and then empower them with the freedom to experiment, explore and innovate. Listen to them. Open discussions allow for a free flow of ideas, and the best of ideas often stem as offshoots of healthy dialogues and exchange of ideas. Finally, lead by example and delegate wisely.
10. What motivates you to get up every morning? What do you take pride in when it comes to your company?
Working with a team that pushes itself inspires and motivates me to bring the best I can bring every day. The enthusiasm the Magnifi team demonstrates, and the constant innovation around me, this makes me want to do better.
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Vinayak Shrivastav,
Co-founder & CEO, of Magnifi by VideoVerse
Vinayak is the CEO and Co-founder of VideoVerse, a video technology company that encapsulates an ecosystem of smart video editing tools using AI and provides next-generation platforms for all enterprise and individual creators. He, along with his partners Saket Dandotia, and Alok Patil identified a need for automation in the video content category, giving way to the inception of VideoVerse.In his current role, Vinayak spearheads the strategic goals of the company to create a profitable future roadmap. He has built the sales and marketing strategy from scratch and under his leadership, the company has witnessed a significant growth of over 200% year on year.He is passionate about his work and strives to keep innovating, remain customer-focused, and be a leading video-tech platform not just in India but also across the globe. In the coming future, he aims to venture into the international market by establishing VideoVerse in US, UK, EU, and South East Asia.
Armed with a B.Tech in Mechanical Engineering from Pune University, and an MBA from London Business School , Vinayak has achieved several milestones throughout his prolific career. Having been a former VC, Vinayak has worked with a few start-ups who were in their growth stage and has successfully exited those early-stage start-ups.
An avid reader, he enjoys playing the guitar and tennis when he is not working. Currently residing in Mumbai with his family, he follows the motto of ‘everyone has stories to tell’ – stories that will not only engage, inform, surprise, delight, and impact their audience, but will also deliver on measurable business goals
