Authors First Emerges With $10M+ to Make AI-Made TV Series at ~$4,000 per Minute
lmoroney · x · 2026-10-11
New York book-to-screen studio Authors First came out of stealth with over $10 million in seed funding. Its first project: a six-episode adaptation of bestselling author Conn Iggulden's novel Genghis: Birth of an Empire, produced mostly with AI tools at roughly $4,000 per finished minute.
Key points:
- Iggulden holds final cut — rare in traditional Hollywood adaptations — and is deeply involved in screenplay, casting, and storyboards; he shares revenue after capped costs are recouped.
- Previous Hollywood attempts stalled, with one producer claiming $500 million was needed.
- Founder and CEO Robert Hamwee admits market demand is unknown: cost is no longer the gate, demand is.
Related event: AI Studio Authors First Raises Over $10M to Turn Novels into Series(2 posts)→
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