AI Auto-Generate

If you'd rather build your video scene by scene and control exactly what's shown and said, see Scene Builder instead. This guide covers AI Auto-Generate.

Opening AI Auto-Generate

1. Go to your Media Library.
2. Click + Add Media.
3. Choose Generate AI Video.
4. Click the AI Auto-Generate tab at the top of the panel.

Layout & Rules

This is the first thing you'll see, and it's the single most useful setting for keeping your avatar looking natural — it's sent to HeyGen's AI before your own description, so it applies to every video by default.

• It comes pre-filled with a sensible starting point (split-screen layout, natural mouth movement, no excessive blinking, etc.) — feel free to rewrite it however suits your brand.
• Tick Apply off if you want to skip it entirely for one particular video.
• Reset to default brings back the starting text at any time.
• Whatever you save here becomes this zone's default going forward — set it once in Settings & Brand Setup and every new video starts with it already filled in, still fully editable per video.

Describe your video

Type what you want in the Describe your video box — be as specific or as loose as you like. For example:

Draft with AI

Not sure how to phrase it? Click + Draft with AI and pick a route:

• Tidy up my idea — no Brand Voice needed. Describe what you want however you like — rough, messy and incomplete is fine — and AI turns it into clear directions for HeyGen: the setting, camera angle, how the avatar moves, and the exact words spoken. Leave the box empty to tidy up whatever you've already typed in Describe your video. Tick Write the spoken words for me too if you haven't got a script.
• Use my Brand Voice — enter a Topic (and optionally tick Include a full scene-by-scene script) and it writes a full on-brand prompt. Needs a Brand Voice set up first.

Then click Draft. With Brand Voice, this writes a complete, well-structured prompt for you — using your zone's Brand Voice (and your Brand Kit's colors, if you've set one up — see Settings) — which drops straight into the box above, fully editable before you generate. It also automatically knows about your active Layout & Rules text, so it won't write anything that contradicts them (like describing a different screen layout, or giving the avatar expressions your rules already rule out). Needs a Brand Voice set up first — see Settings & Brand Setup.

Reference files (optional)

Add up to 20 images or clips to guide the style, product, or content. HeyGen treats these as creative inspiration rather than fixed scenes — add them via + From Library, + Upload Photo/Video, or + Create image with AI (pick a model, describe the image, and add it as a reference).

Options (optional)

Everything here is optional — leave it all alone and HeyGen's AI decides for you.

• Pin a specific avatar — tick this to lock in one of your prepared avatars (same picker as in the Scene Builder: Brand Face, From Library, Upload Photo, My Avatars, or HeyGen Avatars) instead of letting HeyGen choose. Once an avatar is chosen you can also click ✨ Edit with AI (describe a change, optionally attach reference graphics like a product photo) or Remove background (Adobe Express's background remover) — the result becomes your pinned avatar, and the original stays in My Avatars. See the Product Placement use case for a full walkthrough.
• Pin a specific voice — same idea, for the voice.
• Apply my Brand Kit — appears once you've set one up (see Settings) and keeps the video's colors on-brand.
• Use Brand Glossary for correct pronunciation — appears once you've set one up, and fixes how specific words are pronounced.
• Orientation — Let AI decide, Portrait, or Landscape.

Generating your video

1. Give it an optional Title.
2. Click Generate Video.

HeyGen's AI composes the whole video from your prompt, so this can take a while — feel free to close the panel and carry on with other things. You'll get a notification the moment it's ready, and it lands automatically in your Media Library.

My Videos & saving your work

• My Videos (top of the panel) shows every video you've ever generated or attempted, with its status, prompt, and a Check status button for anything still processing — handy if a video finished but you never got the notification.
• Save Progress / Open Saved let you save your prompt and settings and come back to them later.

Quick tips

• The more specific your prompt, the more consistent the result — mention length, tone, and what happens at the end (a call to action, for example).
• Leave "Pin a specific avatar/voice" unticked the first few times — letting HeyGen choose is often the more interesting result, and it's exactly why this mode exists.
• If your avatar's movement or mouth sync ever looks off, that's exactly what Layout & Rules is for — tweak it once in Settings and it fixes every future video.