Hailuo AI vs Runway: pricing, features and which to choose

Hailuo AI is MiniMax’s consumer video generation service, operated internationally through Nanonoble Pte. Ltd. MiniMax was founded in 2021 by former SenseTime researchers. Reuters reported in 2023 that MiniMax was raising more than $250 million at an approximately $1.2 billion valuation. Fortune reported an Alibaba-led financing round of at least $600 million in 2024 at a valuation above $2.5 billion. Independent reporting places Hailuo Video 01’s launch in September 2024. Hailuo remains active across web, mobile, and API access. Its primary audience is creators producing short clips. The subscription structure combines monthly credits, queue priority, watermark removal, and access to MiniMax video models, making the service oriented toward iterative short-form production rather than full long-form editing workflows.

A typical Hailuo workflow begins with a text prompt or source image, followed by choices for model, duration, and resolution. Hailuo 2.3 supports text-to-video and image-to-video generation at 768p for six or ten seconds, and at 1080p for six seconds. The API accepts prompts of up to 2,000 characters and supports pan, truck, push, pull, pedestal, tilt, zoom, shake, tracking, and static-shot commands. Frame controls include Start and End Frame and End Frame Only. Free accounts can queue three tasks and generate one video at a time. Paid accounts can queue five tasks and generate two videos simultaneously. These limits distinguish unpaid experimentation from higher-throughput workflows for creators and developers producing multiple variations.

Hailuo’s short outputs and credit accounting suit social posts, product concepts, and repeated visual experiments more than finished narrative production. Google Veo offers native audio, reference images, first and last frame controls, scene extension, and 4K options. OpenAI Sora targets higher-end generation with longer reported output ceilings, while Kling AI emphasizes longer sequenced creation and audio features. Hailuo’s terms grant paid subscribers commercial-use rights, while also granting MiniMax and its affiliates a broad perpetual license over submitted and generated content. Privacy retention and training practices require review before confidential uploads. Pick Hailuo for inexpensive short clips, 1080p output, camera commands, and frame controls, especially when rapid visual testing matters more than integrated editing, audio, or extended sequence production.

Runway AI makes a web platform for generating and editing video, images, and audio. The company was founded in 2018 by Cristóbal Valenzuela, Alejandro Matamala, and Anastasis Germanidis. Runway announced more than $300 million in Series D funding in April 2025, while Reuters reported the round at $308 million and the company’s valuation above $3 billion. Runway’s pricing page says the service has more than 60 million creators. The product combines Runway models with selected models from other labs, a browser workspace, APIs, and enterprise controls. It focuses on generative media rather than general-purpose chat or coding. Gen-4, announced in 2025, targets consistent characters, locations, and objects across scenes. For buyers, its appeal is the combination of generation and production tools within a single account, rather than an isolated text prompt box.

A typical Runway project starts with a text prompt, reference image, or existing clip. Gen-4.5 supports text-to-video and image-to-video generation, clips from two to ten seconds, 720p output, and 24 or 25 frames per second. Gen-4 uses visual references with instructions to preserve subjects, locations, objects, styles, and compositions across scenes. Users can iterate on generations, upscale or download results, and work with image, audio, and editing tools. Runway Dev exposes media models through APIs, while enterprise customers can connect web and API workflows under one agreement. In September 2026, Runway introduced unified pricing, allowing purchased credits to be used across its web application and Runway Dev. A useful production habit is to decide which shot needs generation before spending credits on variations, since each additional attempt draws on the allowance.

Runway suits creators who need reference-guided video generation, short-form iteration, and several media models in one workspace. It is less suitable for predictable high-volume rendering because generation is credit-metered and Standard and Pro credits reset each cycle. Standard terms say inputs and outputs may be used to train or improve models. Enterprise agreements add contractual no-training commitments, zero-retention support, and IP indemnification, subject to their terms. Compared with Adobe Firefly, Runway is more centered on generative video; compared with OpenAI Sora, it offers a broader editing and model workspace; compared with Luma Dream Machine, it adds stronger API and enterprise workflow options. Pick Runway for controllable visual iteration and connected web and API production. Its strongest buyer is a creator who already has a shot list and needs multiple visual treatments, with time reserved for selection and editing.