Blackmagic Design

Cutback Launches Selects AI Pre‑Editing Tool

Cutback announced Selects, an AI-driven pre-editing tool for professional video production teams. Selects automates multicam syncing, word-level transcription, speaker identification from a single audio file, topic and scene detection, repeated-take selection, and produces an organized rough cut compatible with Adobe Premiere, Final Cut Pro, and DaVinci Resolve. Cutback says internal testing and customer feedback show up to a 60% reduction in editing preparation time when Selects is used. The product integrates with Cutback’s existing Premiere Assistant plugin, is offered by subscription (introductory pricing from $16/month billed annually) and includes a seven-day trial. Cutback made Selects available to professional editors for evaluation, citing use cases such as podcasts, interviews and documentary workflows.

Adobe acquires Topaz Labs for AI image and video

Adobe announced on June 25, 2026 that it is acquiring Topaz Labs, a two-decade-old maker of AI models and tools for image and video enhancement. Topaz — winner of a 2025 Emmy for production technology — offers models and products such as Astra (AI video upscaling), Wonder (image retouching) and a NeuroStream technology that helps run large video models on consumer GPUs. Adobe said it will fold Topaz into its creative business, integrate Topaz models into Firefly and other Creative Cloud apps, and continue to offer Topaz tools as standalone services via the company's website. Adobe expects the transaction to close in the second half of 2026. Adobe framed the acquisition as improving on-device performance and making advanced AI-driven editing faster and more accessible for creative professionals.

Turn Your 404 Page Into a Lead Generator

A Marketing Ideas newsletter lists practical marketing growth hacks focused on turning rare or error-driven touchpoints into engagement and leads. Highlights include TestResults’ 404 that gifts a personalized AirPods case to visitors, using a bonus form question to learn whether AI hallucinations drove the visit, and Warmly’s accidental lone “z” typo that generated replies and an estimated $100K pipeline. The piece also recommends nostalgia-linked discounts, adopting a GitHub-style contribution grid to drive habit and retention, and mailing people printed versions of their top social posts as a low-cost outreach channel. The newsletter is sponsored by TLDR and cites specific tools and services (Postpilot, Lob, Handwrytten) for executing some tactics.