Earning money from cartoons created with artificial intelligence is attracting more and more attention. The author receives many inquiries from people who want to create children's animated series with characters and storylines. Such projects include character development, image creation, script writing, animation, lip-sync voiceover, editing, and preparing videos for YouTube. However, in the author's opinion, most of these requests do not address the main question: how exactly the creator will earn income.

Monetization Options

The author identifies four ways to earn money:

1. Native advertising. Integrating ads directly into the cartoon.
2. Selling courses on creating cartoons.
3. Platform monetization. Payouts for views on YouTube and TikTok. Instagram does not offer direct monetization.
4. Commissioned cartoons for clients.

Advertising

The author notes that advertising on Instagram is officially prohibited. Including a sponsored integration featuring a store in a video carries a high risk of a fine for both the store and the author of the video.

According to the author, in Russia the strictness of the laws is offset by their weak enforcement.

The author does not recommend relying on advertising as a primary source of income. Even with a significant investment of time and money, a cartoon may receive no views.

Courses

The author believes that selling courses brings the greatest income. Course authors often promise quick earnings and display high incomes. According to the author, the main source of income for such authors is selling courses, not cartoons.

Platform Payouts

YouTube and TikTok pay income for views. In the author's opinion, these are the only social networks where a creator can earn real income from cartoons. To do this, the content must be interesting to the audience. The author notes that this task is harder than it seems.

Custom Animated Films

The author questions the demand for custom animated films. In his assessment, such orders come mainly from people who have completed courses and then approach the creator to produce an animated film. The author does not confirm a sustained demand for these services.

Cost of Tools

High-quality generation requires regular spending on paid subscriptions. The author names Midjourney, ElevenLabs, Runway, Sora, and other services built for such tasks. There are also tools focused specifically on animation. Free versions offer small limits and watermarks on videos, which makes it impossible to create high-quality content.

There is no single inexpensive model that can do all the work.

Price Growth Forecast

The author believes that AI services are currently underpriced and that the AI market is in the phase of forming a "bubble." According to him, the low price of subscriptions, for example $20 per month for ChatGPT and Claude, is explained by investment.

The author cites data on Anthropic: in his opinion, the company operates at a loss and does not earn a profit. He assumes that the company's losses over the last six months amounted to $86 billion.

In the author's view, once investors pull out, subscription costs will rise. A service that costs $20 could cost$200, or possibly $300–500 per month. The author considers such an increase inevitable.

Creation Process

The author notes that a high-quality result does not appear on the first attempt. As an example, he cites a cartoon about a rhinoceros, for which, according to available information, about 20–30 attempts were needed to obtain an acceptable frame. Each attempt consumes tokens, which are paid for. Thus, creating each cartoon turns out to be noticeably expensive. In the author's view, multiple failed generations and spent credits are unavoidable.

Role of the Creator

The author emphasizes that AI is a tool, not a ready-made solution. Without experience, an understanding of composition, and scriptwriting skills, the result will, in his assessment, be of low quality. AI does not replace a specialist who knows what they are doing. The author believes that creating cartoons, films, and stories with AI requires knowledge of screenwriting craft and directing.

As an example, the author cites the animated series "Zazerkalye" (The Looking Glass). According to him, the creator of this project has experience in screenwriting, directing, and developing characters and the story's world. Creating such a project requires a great deal of work: knowledge of the laws of dramaturgy, pacing, editing, and building a logical plot and world.

Difficulty and Competition

In the author's view, an animated film is a full-fledged work that AI cannot produce from a single prompt. By his estimate, most projects fail to reach an audience. He notes that the share of projects that attract a long-term audience is roughly one in a hundred or one in a thousand.

The creator of an animated series needs to release new episodes regularly. Over time, the supply of ideas may run out. According to the author, the audience is demanding, and its expectations rise along with the level of the creators.

Experience of Successful Projects

The author mentions the animated series "Zazerkalye" (Looking Glass), "Zhmykh" (Oilcake), and a project about anomalous phenomena. In his opinion, they are created by professionals who understand the goals of their work and ways of monetization. Most often, the income comes from native advertising or the sale of courses. According to the author, the creators of the anomalies project sell courses, and this brings in significant income. The author assesses the probability of repeating the path of these authors by purchasing such a course at approximately 99% as low.

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Conclusion. According to the author's assessment, earning money from AI cartoons requires professional skills, regular spending on tools, a monetization strategy, and long-term work with an audience. Most projects do not gain reach, and income from courses and the sale of promises often exceeds income from the cartoons themselves.