# Runway AI Festival

**Type:** Annual creative competition and exhibition
**Parent:** Runway (AI creative tools company)
**Status:** Active
**Domain:** Entertainment, AI creative tools

## Overview
Annual festival showcasing AI-generated creative work across multiple media categories. Originally launched as "AI Film Festival" focused exclusively on filmmaking, expanded in 2026 to "AI Festival" covering six creative domains.

## Timeline
- **2024** — First AI Film Festival held with ~300 submissions
- **2025** — Second festival with 6,000 submissions (20x growth); IMAX partnership added for commercial screenings
- **2026-01-01** — Renamed to "AI Festival" and expanded to six categories: Film, Design, New Media, Fashion, Advertising, Gaming
- **2026-01-28** — Submission window opens (closes April 20, 2026)
- **2026-04-30** — Winners announced (scheduled)
- **2026-06-11** — New York gala at Alice Tully Hall, Lincoln Center
- **2026-06-18** — Los Angeles gala

## Structure (2026)
**Categories:** Film, Design, New Media, Fashion, Advertising, Gaming
**Prize per category:** $15,000 cash + 1M Runway credits
**Selection:** 10 finalists per category for gala screenings
**Venues:** Alice Tully Hall (Lincoln Center, NYC); Los Angeles venue TBD
**Distribution:** Partner festival screenings worldwide

## Significance
The festival represents institutional infrastructure for AI creative tool adoption, transitioning from hobbyist/experimental filmmaking community to multi-domain professional creative ecosystem. The 2026 expansion to commercial categories (Advertising, Gaming) tests whether tool-based creative communities can maintain identity while scaling across professional domains.