Abstract:
AV2, a new generation of open video coding standards, is moving from technical specifications to practical applications. The Alliance for Open Media (AOMedia) recently stated that AV2 has only been released for a few months, and relevant companies have already begun to promote encoders, browser support, video playback and compatibility testing. Intel is also developing SVT-AV2, an open source codec based on CPU operation, to provide new technology options for future video compression and streaming media transmission.
AV2 is the successor standard to AV1 and was developed by the Alliance for Open Media. Members of the alliance include technology companies such as Amazon, Apple, Google, Intel, Netflix and Samsung. Compared with traditional video coding standards, AV2 continues the open, royalty-free design direction, hoping to improve image quality and compression efficiency while reducing the cost of deploying new technologies for video platforms, equipment manufacturers and content service providers.
According to data released by the Alliance for Open Media, AV2’s compression efficiency is approximately 30% higher than that of AV1 under a variety of test content and objective image quality indicators. This means that when achieving similar image quality, AV2 is expected to use a lower bit rate to transmit video, thereby reducing bandwidth consumption; in turn, at the same bit rate, there is also a chance to provide better image quality. However, the actual benefits will be affected by factors such as video content, encoder implementation, and quality settings. 30% does not mean that all videos will receive the same improvement.
In addition to compression efficiency, AV2 has also been improved for scenarios such as high dynamic range (HDR) video and supports more complex video expressions. The new standard also targets multi-view video, higher frame rates and other new video applications. However, whether these technical capabilities can be transformed into actual experience improvements still depends on the maturity of the encoder, terminal decoding capabilities and platform deployment progress.
Google has begun experimenting with AV2 support in YouTube and Chrome, and expects to start offering AV2-encoded video streams in early 2027. Meta also plans to use AV2 for video content on Facebook and Instagram. If large video platforms gradually adopt this standard, the improvement in compression efficiency has the opportunity to translate into lower bandwidth costs, more efficient content distribution, and a more stable video playback experience under the same network conditions.
For Internet video platforms, improving encoding efficiency has direct economic significance. Video traffic occupies a large amount of network transmission resources. Even if the bandwidth saved for each video is limited, there may be a significant cost difference when there are a large number of users and long-term playback. More efficient encoding can also help platforms provide higher resolution or higher quality video with limited bandwidth.
At the same time, Intel is developing SVT-AV2, a CPU-based AV2 software encoder. The project continues Intel's previous work on Scalable Video Technology (SVT), including the already widely used SVT-AV1. SVT-AV2 is expected to provide servers, content production platforms and developers with a set of scalable open source encoding tools, allowing AV2 to not only rely on dedicated hardware, but also be able to encode on general-purpose processors.
Software encoders are important for the adoption of new standards. Video platforms usually need to convert a large number of original videos into different resolutions, bit rates and formats to adapt to mobile phones, computers, TVs and different network environments. If the encoder speed is not fast enough or the computing resources required to process high-quality video are too high, the platform may need to pay higher deployment costs even if the new standard has excellent compression efficiency. The development of SVT-AV2 will help promote related performance optimization, but its final encoding speed, resource usage and image quality performance still need to wait for subsequent versions and independent testing.
The popularization of AV2 also faces another key issue: terminal hardware decoding support. Even if the video platform has been able to generate AV2 video, if the user's mobile phone, TV, computer or other device lacks the corresponding hardware decoding capabilities, it may need to rely on the CPU for software decoding during playback, increasing power consumption and processor burden. This is especially important for mobile devices, as real-time decoding of high-resolution video can affect battery life and heating performance.
Therefore, AV2 still needs to be jointly promoted by browsers, operating systems, video platforms, chip manufacturers and equipment manufacturers from standard release to widespread application. At this stage, relevant companies have begun implementation and compatibility testing, but this does not mean that existing devices on the market have generally supported AV2 hardware decoding.
From the perspective of industry development, AV2 continues AV1's direction of establishing an open, royalty-free video encoding ecosystem, while further pursuing higher compression efficiency and richer video capabilities. If large platforms such as YouTube gradually deploy AV2 from 2027, and open source encoding tools such as Intel SVT-AV2 continue to mature, the new standard will have the opportunity to enter a wider practical application stage.
However, AV2 will not completely replace AV1, H.264 or HEVC in a short time. Video platforms must simultaneously consider legacy device compatibility, encoding costs, hardware support range, and user experience. It is expected that old and new encoding formats will coexist for a long time. For ordinary users, there is no need to specifically change equipment in the near future; truly significant changes are more likely to emerge as new generations of mobile phones, computers, TVs and video platforms gradually support AV2.
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