MetaCreations
MetaCreations is an academic research laboratory at Simon Fraser University developing generative AI systems for music, movement, visual arts, and video games. It builds autonomous creative agents and co-creation tools, funded by research grants rather than commercial revenue.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2008
- HeadquartersSurrey, Canada
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What MetaCreations does
MetaCreations, operating as the Metacreation Lab for Creative AI, is an academic research laboratory housed within Simon Fraser University's School of Interactive Arts and Technology in Vancouver, Canada. Founded in 2008 and led by Dr. Philippe Pasquier, the lab develops state-of-the-art generative AI systems and algorithms aimed at achieving human-level creativity for content creation across music, visual arts, movement, and video games. Its portfolio comprises multiple proprietary research systems, including MACAT and MACataRT (musical agents for real-time improvisation), MMM, MMM4Live, and Calliope (multi-track music generation and Ableton Live integration), Autolume and DJ-MVP (automated music visualization and video generation), EMVIZ and MAVi (movement visualization grounded in Laban Movement Analysis), BeatBender (autonomous rhythm generation), PreGLAM (predictive gameplay affect modeling), and automatic video game level generation using evolutionary algorithms.
The lab is fundamentally not a commercial product company. It has no pricing, no paying customer base, no revenue model, and no venture capital or private equity ownership. Operations are funded by academic research grants from federal bodies including SSHRC and NSERC, alongside provincial support from BC Arts Council, and institutional partners such as Vancouver AI and Simon Fraser University. Distribution occurs through academic channels, open-source releases, an extensive publications database, downloadable portfolio, shared datasets, and a Creative AI course offered on Kadenze. The organization's stated mission is the partial or complete automation of creative tasks, spanning human-driven co-creation tools through to fully autonomous creative agents producing original artwork alongside human counterparts.
MetaCreations firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- MetaCreations
- Legal name
- Metacreation Lab
- Website
- https://metacreation.net
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2008
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- MetaCreations is an academic research laboratory at Simon Fraser University developing generative AI systems for music, movement, visual arts, and video games. It builds autonomous creative agents and co-creation tools, funded by research grants rather than commercial revenue.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
MetaCreations industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Creative AI Research
- NAICS
- Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (except Nanotechnology and Biotechnology) (541715)
- SIC
- Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Multimodal Generation (Text-Image-Video-Audio) & Creative Toolchains (HDAAACAG)
Keywords
Where MetaCreations is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Surrey
- HQ country
- Canada
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
MetaCreations business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels3 records
MetaCreations product offering
Product offeringCore offering
MetaCreations (Metacreation Lab for Creative AI) is an academic research laboratory that develops state-of-the-art generative AI algorithms and systems capable of human-level creativity for content creation. Its portfolio spans human-driven co-creation generators and autonomous creative agents producing original artwork, music, movement visualizations, and video game levels. Outputs are distributed as research systems, publications, open-source projects, and educational resources rather than commercial software products.
Product overview
MetaCreations (Metacreation Lab for Creative AI) is a research laboratory affiliated with Simon Fraser University that has been at the forefront of Creative AI and generative systems since 2008. The organization is not a commercial product company but rather develops research systems and algorithms for generative AI in creative domains. Their portfolio includes multiple interconnected research systems: EMVIZ for movement visualization; Autolume and DJ-MVP for music visualization and video generation; MACAT/MACataRT and MMM for multi-track musical generation and agent-based music creation; BeatBender for rhythm generation; and Automatic Video Game Level Generation systems. These systems range from human-driven co-creation tools (like Calliope and MMM4Live for Ableton Live integration) to fully autonomous creative agents. The research spans multiple modalities including video, audio, image, and movement data, unified by the goal of developing machines with human-level creative capabilities.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Metacreation Lab for Creative AI Research laboratory developing state-of-the-art generative AI systems and algorithms capable of human-level creativity for content creation, encompassing both human-driven co-creation tools and autonomous creative agents.
- EMVIZ Interactive artistic visualization engine that produces dynamic visual representations of Laban Basic-Efforts derived from Laban Movement Analysis, mapping movement qualities to design rules and color palettes.
- Autolume Automated live music visualization system that generates visual content synchronized with music in real-time for performances and installations.
- DJ-MVP Automatic music video generation system that creates video content synchronized to music for performances.
- MACAT and MACataRT Musical agent systems designed for interactive music-making between human musicians and AI, featuring real-time synthesis and collaborative improvisation capabilities with audio mosaicing.
- MMM (Multi-track Music Machine) Multi-track music generation system for creating complete musical compositions across multiple audio tracks.
- Calliope Web MIDI environment for multi-track music generation supporting computer-assisted music composition through web-based interfaces.
- MMM4Live Multi-Track Music Machine for Ableton Live integration, enabling real-time music generation within the Ableton Live digital audio workstation environment.
- MoComp Tool for comparative visualization between takes of motion capture data, enabling analysis and comparison of movement performances.
- MAVi Aesthetic Movement Visualization Tool for visualizing and analyzing movement data with artistic visual representations.
- Automatic Video Game Level Generation Evolutionary algorithm-based system for automatically designing levels for skill-based video games using challenge modeling and player enjoyment prediction.
- PreGLAM Predictive, Gameplay-based Layered Affect Model for modeling emotional perception of gameplay spectators using appraisal-based approaches.
- BeatBender Subsumption architecture-based autonomous rhythm generation system using behavior-based agents for emergent rhythmic drum pattern creation.
Companies that use MetaCreations
Customer profileSegments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
MetaCreations technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
AI capability12 records
Feature6 records
MetaCreations partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and supportive.
- Simon Fraser University (SFU)coreMetacreation Lab is housed within SFU's School of Interactive Arts and Technology. The lab conducts both scientific and artistic research agendas at the university, with Dr. Philippe Pasquier serving as professor since January 2008.
- Vancouver AIsupportiveLocal AI ecosystem partner supporting creative AI initiatives in Vancouver.
Scale indicators2 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
MetaCreations competitors and assessment
Company assessmentMarket position
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
MetaCreations social profiles
Digital presenceMetaCreations financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
MetaCreations leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
MetaCreations funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
MetaCreations M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about MetaCreations
What does MetaCreations do?
MetaCreations (Metacreation Lab for Creative AI) is an academic research laboratory that develops state-of-the-art generative AI algorithms and systems capable of human-level creativity for content creation. Its portfolio spans human-driven co-creation generators and autonomous creative agents producing original artwork, music, movement visualizations, and video game levels. Outputs are distributed as research systems, publications, open-source projects, and educational resources rather than commercial software products.
Is MetaCreations a public or private company?
MetaCreations is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was MetaCreations founded?
MetaCreations was founded in 2008. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is MetaCreations based?
MetaCreations is headquartered in Surrey, Canada, in the North America region.
Does MetaCreations have an API?
No public API is recorded for MetaCreations.
What industry is MetaCreations in?
MetaCreations's product category is Creative AI Research. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HDAAACAG, Multimodal Generation (Text-Image-Video-Audio) & Creative Toolchains. Its NAICS code is 541715 and its SIC code is 7372.