At Beyond Expo 2025 in Macau, Chinese storage specialist Vivibit pulled back the curtain on its next-gen AI-boosted NAS units, the E1001 and E1005. On the surface, these boxes look like any other network-attached storage device. But under the hood, they’re packing NVIDIA-optimized AI modules that could revolutionize how video editors, content creators, and studios handle & index massive footage libraries.
If you’ve ever spent hours manually tagging clips or scrubbing through endless rushes to find that perfect shot, you’ll appreciate what Vivibit is bringing to the table. Imagine typing “red cars” into a search bar and instantly seeing every video clip featuring red vehicles, without lifting a finger to tag anything. That’s the magic of AI-driven indexing running locally on your own hardware.
How AI Video Search Works
Diving into the tech, Vivibit’s system leverages NVIDIA Metropolis along with the AI Blueprint for Video Search & Summarization suite. These powerful software components enable object recognition, automatic transcription, real-time tracking, and scene summarization—all on a single GPU. During the live demo, the engine ran smoothly on an NVIDIA MX103 with just 8 GB of VRAM, and you can scale up to 16 GB for heavier workloads.
The result? A slick, lag-free experience where clips pop up the moment you hit Enter. We saw objects detected in under a second, and semantic search results that rival the precision of Google’s own search tech—except everything stays in your private network. It’s a game-changer for shops that can’t afford to upload terabytes of footage to the cloud but still need cutting-edge AI capabilities.
Specs, Configurations, and Costs
Let’s talk hardware. The base E1001 starts at $2,200, which includes the chassis and core components but no GPU or SSD. Add a basic NVIDIA GPU for about $400, plus a high-speed SSD (M.2, U.2, or E3.S) for another few hundred dollars, and you’re easily looking at a $3,000–$3,500 total investment. It’s not your average home NAS, but a workstation-ready platform built for pros.
The E1005 ups the ante with extra expansion slots, beefed-up cooling, and a rack-mount chassis ideal for editing suites and production houses. If you foresee heavy-duty indexing or simultaneous AI tasks, stepping up to the E1005 with a beefier GPU and top-tier SSDs will ensure your workflow stays buttery smooth.
Real-World Benefits for Creators
Why does this matter? In a typical post-production scenario, video projects can generate hundreds of hours of unedited footage. Sifting through that manually isn’t just tedious—it’s a productivity killer. With Vivibit’s AI NAS, you can search phrases like “night rain scene” or “person in a blue shirt” and jump right to the relevant clips, cutting down review time from hours to seconds.
Vivibit isn’t stopping at object detection. Roadmaps hint at facial recognition, emotion detection, and automated shot-type classification. By mixing open-source LLMs like Llama or Nemotron with proprietary algorithms, the system indexes content as soon as it’s ingested. Everything stays local, offering peace of mind for anyone handling sensitive or confidential footage.
Is It Worth It?
Watching the demo, it’s impossible not to be impressed. Vivibit has essentially turned a NAS into a smart video assistant, capable of scanning terabytes of content as effortlessly as you browse your email. But the sticker shock is real: this is firmly a professional tool. Ambitious freelancers and small studios will see the value, but casual content makers might find the price tag hard to swallow.
For now, Vivibit is focused on Asia and North America, with Europe potentially next if demand picks up. Regardless of where it lands, one thing’s clear: local post-production workflows are gearing up for a major upgrade. Between Adobe’s AI features in Premiere Pro and Vivibit’s on-premises solution, editors have never had more powerful tools at their fingertips. Ready to ditch manual tagging for good?
