Interview with the CrumplePop Team Members
CrumplePop, a company that started as a small video production shop twelve years ago, has made a significant shift in its focus and technology. Originally specialized in creating video plugins for professional video editing software, CrumplePop has now transitioned to focus solely on audio plugins.
The co-founder of CrumplePop, with a background primarily in developing video plugins, saw an unaddressed need in the area of audio. Video creators, he realized, needed good audio tools designed specifically for video people. This realization led to the development of CrumplePop's first AI-powered audio plugin, WindRemover, which was released in early 2020.
The development process for WindRemover was a learning journey, involving many mistakes and keeping research and development (R&D) closely linked to product development. After working on the underlying technology for a couple of years, CrumplePop finally released WindRemover, a tool designed to remove wind noise and improve audio quality for video and podcast creators.
Following the success of WindRemover, CrumplePop later introduced SoundApp, an AI-powered standalone audio cleanup application. SoundApp is designed to improve clarity, fix levels, and remove noise and echo easily for content creators and podcasters.
CrumplePop's focus on AI in its tools is strategic. AI, the company believes, can address problems that were impossible for classical audio DSP approaches. For instance, CrumplePop's EchoRemover plugin uses AI to remove reverb, a capability not possible with classical EQ, compressors, or limiters.
The collaboration between CrumplePop and Boris FX brings these audio tools designed for video editors to the Boris FX community. This partnership is expected to be beneficial for Boris FX's internal engineers and products, as CrumplePop's experience with building AI tech will be invaluable.
AI tools are providing new ways for audio and video editors to work faster and deliver more polished projects. They offer opportunities for "fix-it" type tools and utilities for visual effects artists and editors. There are also potential opportunities for generative AI in the future for visual effects.
In addition to its focus on AI, CrumplePop offers a free Starter pack for download. The company's AI-powered plugins are designed with a focus on the needs of video and podcast creators.
Before co-founding CrumplePop, one of the founders had experience working at small tech startups. The company's early projects included a farm-to-table kitchen documentary, low-budget music videos, and an instructional video about making greenhouses.
CrumplePop's strategic move to address growing demand in the audio post-production and podcasting markets by leveraging AI technology is a testament to the company's adaptability and commitment to meeting industry trends and user needs.
The co-founder of CrumplePop, with a background in video plugins development, saw the need for targeted audio solutions for video creators and embarked on the development of AI-powered audio plugins, a shift away from the company's initial focus on video production and technology. After becoming a pioneer in AI-driven wind noise removal with WindRemover and subsequently introducing SoundApp, a standalone AI-powered audio cleanup application, CrumplePop continues to leverage artificial-intelligence to address complex audio problems that classical approaches have found impossible, such as removing reverb with EchoRemover. With a free Starter pack available, CrumplePop's commitment to meeting industry trends and user needs through the implementation of AI technology in its business, finance, and entrepreneurship endeavors is evident.
