Chroma Awards

What Chroma Awards does

Chroma Awards operates global competitions for AI-generated creative content spanning film, music videos, and (from Season 2) games and music. Founded in 2023 as Project Odyssey and later rebranded, the platform was incubated by ElevenLabs and has scaled to 6,500+ cumulative submissions from 5,500+ participants across seasons, naming 300+ winners. Submissions are produced by creators using third-party AI tools (predominantly those of its sponsors), and creator participation is free.

The platform's underlying architecture is a competition and showcase funnel rather than a software product: it runs themed seasonal competitions with curated categories and sub-categories, supports a Discord-based creator community, and produces an awards ceremony. Season 2 (September 2026, with H1 2027 ceremony) expands the Film division into Micro-Drama Series, Short Form & Social, and Trailers, and adds new Game and Song divisions. Sponsorship is the sole disclosed revenue mechanism, with named sponsors including Google, Adobe, a16z, CapCut, Dreamina, Freepik, fal, Kling, Luma, and Hailuo.

The business model is sponsorship-driven and dual-sided: AI tool vendors and tech companies fund cash prizes ($300K+ distributed) and free tool trials ($2M+ distributed) in exchange for access to a concentrated pool of AI-fluent creators. Headcount is small (1-10 employees), consistent with a lean operations model that outscribes much of the underlying AI capability to sponsor partners. The company's strategic value to sponsors is distribution to a hard-to-reach, high-intent creator segment that drives adoption of generative AI tools.

Name

Chroma Awards

Website

https://chromaawards.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2023

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Chroma Awards operates global AI-driven competitions in film, music videos, and games, serving creators with free participation and monetizing through sponsorships from AI tool providers such as Google, Adobe, and a16z.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Creative competitions and awards

NAICS

Other Performing Arts Companies (711190), Independent Artists, Writers, and Performers (711510)

akta.pro primary industry

Virtual Awards Ceremonies & Competitions (Judging, Voting) (MPAGAOAN)

Keywords

• AI film competition
• Creative media awards
• AI content contests
• Digital creator programs
• Entertainment competitions

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Marketing or Sales, Operations, Personnel, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Competition Prizes Distribution: Distributes sponsored prizes including free trials, credits, and cash prizes to competition winners. Funded through sponsorship partnerships with AI companies and technology providers. Revenue model appears to be sponsorship-driven rather than direct monetization.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Chroma Awards runs seasonal global competitions for AI-generated film, advertising, music video, song, game, and behind-the-scenes content. Creators submit entries for free across six divisions and dozens of genre categories, and winners receive sponsored prizes including free trials/tool credits (over $1M+ per season), cash prizes ($250,000+ per season), distribution/development deals, jobs/internships, and an invitation to a Hollywood awards ceremony gala.

Product overview

The Chroma Awards is a competition platform that organizes and hosts the world's largest AI film and media competition. The platform operates across six major divisions: Film, Advertising, Music Video, Song, Game, and Behind-the-Scenes. The company runs annual seasons (Season 1 completed, Season 2 launching September 2026) where participants submit AI-generated content for judging. Prizes include $1M+ in free trials and $250,000+ in cash awards, with winners flown to Hollywood for an awards ceremony gala. The platform is incubated by ElevenLabs and backed by major technology companies including Google, Adobe, and Luma.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• The Chroma Awards Competition Platform A global AI film and media competition platform that accepts creator submissions across six divisions (Film, Advertising, Music Video, Song, Game, Behind-the-Scenes) and dozens of genre categories, with judging and an awards ceremony gala. Participation is free; winners receive sponsored prizes.
• Watch Portal (Season 1 Winners) Online portal hosting Season 1 winners and finalists, showcasing best-in-class AI-generated film, advertising, music video, song, game, and behind-the-scenes content from the competition.

Quantifiable outcome

• 6500+ Submissions, 5500+ Participants, 300+ Winners & Finalists

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• SXSW Film & TV: SXSW's film and interactive tracks intersect with AI creative work, festival sponsorships, and Hollywood deal-making — overlapping with Chroma's content, community, and sponsor ecosystems.
• Sundance Film Festival: Sundance's New Frontier program and emerging-media categories actively court AI-native creators, positioning it as a higher-prestige alternative venue that competes for the same talent pool Chroma courts.
• Tribeca Festival: Tribeca has expanded into immersive, gaming, and AI-augmented storytelling categories, making it a direct incumbent competitor for prestige AI-generated film submissions and brand partnerships.
• Cannes Lions: Cannes Lions is the global flagship of advertising creativity awards; Chroma's Advertising Division and Hollywood gala positioning explicitly compete for the same brand and agency sponsorship budgets at the top of the market.
• D&AD Awards: D&AD Pencils are the established global benchmark for creative and advertising craft; Chroma's Advertising Division is effectively a younger, AI-native entrant into this awards category and competes for the same brand-sponsor dollars.
• Clio Awards: Clio Entertainment and Clio Music specifically recognize music videos, advertising, and entertainment content — directly overlapping with Chroma's Music Video, Advertising, and Film divisions.

Direct peers

• IndieCade: IndieCade is the leading independent games competition and festival; it directly parallels Chroma's Game Division for AI-generated interactive narrative, music/rhythm, and mobile submissions.
• The Webby Awards: The Webbys recognize excellence in digital content across multiple categories, mirroring Chroma's multi-division approach (film, advertising, video, games) and its sponsorship-and-judging-driven model.
• Runway AI Film Festival: Runway's annual AI-generated film festival is the most direct competitor to Chroma's Film Division — both curate AI-made short films, attract the same AI filmmaker community, and compete for the same AI-vendor sponsorship and prize dollars.

Emerging players

• Vimeo Staff Picks: Vimeo's curated short-form showcase functions as both a discovery layer and a prestige signal for AI filmmakers — comparable to Chroma's watch.chromaawards.com winner showcase in serving as a creator-portfolio and distribution pipeline.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/chromaawards
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/chromaawards
• Instagraminstagram.com/chromaawards
• TikToktiktok.com/@chromaawards

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Chroma Awards