Freebeat Is Paying Out an $8,000 Prize Pool for the Best AI Lyric Video, and Entries Close on 21 October

A lyric video used to be a chore handed to whoever in the label office knew how to use After Effects. Freebeat is now offering $5,000 to the person who makes the best one with AI, and the whole $8,000 pool is open to anyone who can post a video and fill in a form.

The Freebeat AI Lyric Video Challenge opened on 30 September and runs to 21 October 2026. First place takes $5,000, second takes $1,000, third takes $500, and five further engagement awards of $300 each bring the pool to its full figure. The contest was promoted by the AI FACTORYZ account on X, and the entry details sit on Freebeat's contest page. If you have been looking for a reason to turn a favourite track into a finished video, the clock is already running.

What you submit

You make a lyric video, which is a video where the words of a song appear on screen in time with the music. The announcement gives a minimum length of 15 seconds, so a short, polished piece counts. The brief says AI should be part of how you make it, and the contest is run by Freebeat, an AI music video platform.

Entry has two steps. First, post your finished video on social media. Second, submit it through Gleam, the giveaway and contest tool linked from the Freebeat contest page. The video has to be public and live before you submit, so do not leave the posting until the final hour.

The announcement does not say which social platforms are accepted, what hashtags or tags are needed, or how the judges will score entries. Check the contest page for those details before you commit time to a particular platform.

Prize structure

All prizes are listed in US dollars, and the announcement describes them as a prize pool rather than credits or software subscriptions. It does not spell out how or when winners are paid, so treat that as a question to answer from the full rules.

- First place: $5,000
- Second place: $1,000
- Third place: $500
- Engagement Awards: five prizes of $300 each

The name "Engagement Awards" suggests these five prizes reward audience response, such as likes, shares or comments, instead of purely judged quality. The announcement does not define the criteria, so do not assume. If engagement counts, a public post with an audience behind it has an advantage in that category, whatever the quality of the video.

Terms worth reading

The announcement gives only a short summary, and we could not see the full rules from the page we were given. Before you enter, read the terms on the contest page and the Gleam entry form for the following.

- Music rights. A lyric video usually uses a song. Check whether you must supply your own original track, use a licensed one, or may use any music. Posting a video with a copyrighted song to social media can get it muted or removed.
- Licence to your work. Contest organisers often ask for the right to reuse winning or submitted videos in marketing. The announcement says nothing either way, so look for this clause.
- Public posting. Your entry must be posted on social media, so the work will be public from the moment you enter.
- Entry fee. None is mentioned in the announcement. Confirm on the Gleam page that entry is free.
- Eligibility. Age, country and residency rules are not stated in the announcement.

The deadline is given as 21 October 2026, with no cutoff time or timezone published. Submit with a day in hand, so a timezone difference or a slow Gleam page does not cost you the entry.

Source: AI FACTORYZ on X