Israeli AI startup Decart unveils real-time video-to-video transformation tool

After months of anticipation and extensive fundraising, Israeli artificial intelligence startup Decart has unveiled a groundbreaking real-time video transformation technology, setting a new benchmark in the fast-evolving field of generative media.

The new system, dubbed Mirage, is being billed as the world’s first real-time video-to-video model. Unlike existing AI video models that generate short clips lasting just a few seconds, Mirage allows continuous transformation of live or pre-recorded video content without interruption, maintaining high quality and impressive stability throughout.

Mirage enables users to alter visual content on the fly, such as editing a Zoom call while it’s happening, transforming a live Call of Duty game into a Lego-style version mid-play or tailoring streaming content in real time to suit the viewer’s age, language or gender.

While other companies have introduced AI video tools, such as OpenAI’s Sora, Google’s Veo3 and Israeli startup Lightricks’ LTX, Decart’s Mirage stands out for its ability to process and transform video in real time and at scale. The system was developed with live broadcasting and instant creation in mind, focusing on real-time processing with minimal latency.

To achieve this, Decart engineers designed an autoregressive architecture that constructs each video frame based on the previous one and the user’s input prompt. The startup, which specializes in AI optimization, has managed to deliver high-quality visuals without compromising performance.

“Mirage marks the dawn of a new era in video,” said Dr. Dean Leitersdorf, Decart’s co-founder and CEO. “Content is no longer fixed or closed—it’s alive, adaptive and created in real time in collaboration with the user. Anyone can become a creator and give visual form to their imagination. This opens up endless possibilities for creation, communication and a new relationship between people and technology.”

The core of Decart’s breakthrough lies in its proprietary technology, which drastically reduces the cost of running AI models by up to a factor of ten. This innovation has already attracted major clients and generated millions in revenue. Yet even as the company secured a foothold in AI infrastructure, it continued to develop advanced models for real-time video content creation.

In late 2024, Decart released a demo application showcasing its capabilities. The app, named Oasis, let users play in an environment resembling Minecraft, though it was not the actual game. Instead, it was a tool powered by an advanced AI model that generated Minecraft-like visuals in real time as users interacted with the world. Players could move, build, climb and dismantle structures, all rendered instantly by the AI engine.

“Oasis was meant to be a fun little demo, we thought a few people might play with it,” CEO Dr. Dean Leitersdorf told Ynet and Yedioth Ahronoth in a previous interview. “We were stunned by how fast it blew up.”

Within hours, the app went viral across platforms, surpassing ChatGPT in download volume and reaching over 1 million users in just three days. Even Elon Musk weighed in on X (formerly Twitter), writing: “Wow, this is happening fast.”

The viral demo also caught the attention of investors, leading to two fundraising rounds totaling $53 million within two months. Sean Maguire, a partner at Sequoia Capital who has closely followed Decart’s trajectory, said at the time: “The team stood out not just for its technical excellence, but for building systems with clear advantages over competitors. It reminded us of Google in its early days.”

Decart has continued refining its first commercial product, and Mirage is the result, offering a compelling solution to the real-time video-to-video challenge at a fraction of the operational cost of existing alternatives. The technology currently supports generation at 20 frames per second with live-broadcast-quality resolution. Future updates are expected to support Full HD and even 4K, the standard for most video platforms and televisions.

According to Decart, Mirage transforms the very definition of video—from a static, pre-recorded format to a living, flexible, and interactive medium. The implications are broad: new business models for content creators, brands, and platforms. Broadcasters and advertisers, for instance, could generate multiple versions of a single piece of content during a live transmission—without needing to pre-produce dozens of versions in advance. Companies could tailor content in real time to different audience segments.

In gaming, developers and creators could use Mirage to dynamically add effects, create individualized visual styles for each player, and deliver personalized in-game branding—enhancing user experience and engagement. On social platforms, users could use Mirage to change their appearance in real time, create clips or livestream with custom visual effects—all without relying on professional editing tools.

Alongside Mirage, Decart also launched an early version of a new platform that allows users to generate and share AI-processed videos in real time. Users can upload or record a video, type a simple prompt, and the system will transform the visual style while preserving the original structure and motion.

In parallel, Decart announced a strategic research partnership with the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology to establish a joint AI research center. The initiative aims to strengthen academic research, knowledge development, and technological innovation. As part of the collaboration, Decart will sponsor the Technion’s elite honors program—renamed the “Technion-Decart Honors Program”—which CEO Dr. Dean Leitersdorf attended.

Decart was founded in September 2023 by Leitersdorf and Moshe Shalev while serving in Israel’s elite military intelligence Unit 8200. The company now employs around 50 people, most of them based at its Tel Aviv headquarters.