You start by checking an app. Next thing you know, it has been forty minutes already and you are watching the fourth episode of a mini-series featuring an AI character. That's the magic of AI shorts.
Let’s find out exactly what the AI shorts are, why they attract audiences and how five platforms create and promote them, including Candy AI Shorts. All of them go for an older audience, eighteen and above.
What are AI shorts?
Shorts are brief vertical videos created for mobile viewing. With the advent of TikTok, Reels and YouTube Shorts, this type of video has become the most common format for viewing videos.
AI Shorts follow the same concept, but the main characters in the clips are AI-created characters and the videos are produced by artificial intelligence. Furthermore, the videos displayed in apps are either scripted segments or a discovery stream, where the user watches the video and further interacts with a given movie character.
Why are AI shorts so addictive?
The clips that you watch are short and very entertaining, switching from one to the other requires just a tap of a finger, and the episodes usually leave unanswered questions. This is the same formula that helps TikTok to keep its audience immersed and engaged, but with the addition of a chat feature.
However, researchers have found something alarming about this format of video – a meta-analysis published in Psychological Bulletin revealed that greater enjoyment of short videos is strongly associated with lower levels of focus and self-control. You can find a summary of this research on Wikipedia.
Which companion apps offer AI shorts?
Each platform handles shorts differently. Prices change often, so check each site before you pay.
Candy AI
Of all the options available, Candy AI Shorts is by far the closest to a TV show, as it provides short scripted vertical action dramas that feature characters from Candy, organized into series labeled with tags like Fantasy, Teacher and Spicy, and new episodes are labeled “New episodes.” Each episode lasts no longer than two minutes with the first two episodes in each series available for free, and any additional episodes need to be purchased for tokens.
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All episodes are already prepared, meaning they will not go in different directions depending on your choices. These episodes can be viewed as a trailer of a character you may want to interact with later.
Pricing: It costs $13.99 per month to subscribe to Premium.
Crushi.ai
Crushi.ai Shorts has a “new” icon, which also functions as a highlight section. It has additional features such as Crushi Strip, Crushi Meets, Crushi City, feeds, matching and gallery options. Crushi Shorts has movies such as Mile High, A Spell for Three, Snowed In, and filter options like summer, beach and best friends.
Moreover, Crushi Meets is a gambling place for live video chatting with AI partners, while Crushi City serves as an online map with districts. It is for those who wish to enjoy shorts, along with other features.
Pricing: The key plan is $12.99, with any tokens necessary to be bought separately.
Swipey AI
Swipey is a swipe feed launcher for discovery. Each card is full-screen, displaying a character's name, age, and one-line bio, finished off with Interested and Not interested buttons, like counter and chat shortcut. You have arrows on either side to swipe up or down the feed.
Browse a profile and swipe right, and you are talking. That's the fastest route from watching to chatting. It's perfect for someone into dating-app swiping but would rather chance upon characters. Expect limitations on swipes for the free users.
Pricing: There is a free tier, while premium subscription starts at around $7.99 a month, with other sources noting tiers above this.
Ourdream AI
With Ourdream’s Feed, users can view vertical videos in a full-screen format and they will see a tap-to-unmute feature as well as a brief bio for each clip. Moreover, the video would have buttons that prompt chatting, remixing, and liking. The platform also features a side bar linking to create, explore, and generate contents.
Among the five platforms, the closest one to TikTok is Ourdream, and the Explore page shows characters created by users. However, free accounts have some restrictions including just five messages per character since August 2026.
Pricing: Premium subscription which costs around $19.99 per month reduces to about $9.99 if you purchase the annual plan.
Xeve AI
Xeve‘s Feed displays generated visuals and includes thumbs up/down buttons along with the option to Generate from the visuals. The most important feature of the program is the live AI video chatting feature with lip-syncing.
For more information, read our review of Xeve AI. To know more about the developments that led to the spread of this format read why video calls turned out to be the crucial feature for AI companions.
The pricing structure is straightforward. Text chatting is offered free of charge, you need to pay five credits for an image, and twenty for a video.
Pricing: Xeve charges $12.99 monthly, which translates to twelve dollars if you subscribe for a year.
How do these AI shorts platforms compare?
| Platform | Shorts style | Starting price |
|---|---|---|
| Candy AI | Scripted mini drama episodes | About $13.99/month |
| Crushi.ai | Poster-style shorts with filters | About $12.99/month plus tokens |
| Swipey AI | Swipe-to-match feed | Free, premium from about $7.99/month |
| Ourdream AI | Full-screen video feed | About $19.99/month |
| Xeve AI | Generative feed plus live video chat | About $12.99/month plus credits |
How do you pick the right AI shorts app?
Do you need an entertaining story? Check out Candy AI Shorts. Do you prefer variety in a single platform? Then check Crushi.ai. Do you prefer swiping instead of searching? Swipey will suit you. If you need to watch videos first, see Ourdream AI or Xeve AI.
Use the free episodes first, and be cautious with the token cost.