If you’re evaluating AI for your media team, rather than exploring tools that make vague promises about automating a random workflow…‍

‍…Start with metadata tagging.

It’s the foundation for search, collaboration, rights management, and delivery. 

When accompanied by AI, metadata tagging can deliver immediate value by relieving your media team of manual tagging and by optimizing the entire tagging process. 

Which, as it turns out, comes with a full roster of intriguing benefits. 

Why metadata tagging is a smart starting point 

Every media file — whether it’s a video, image, or audio clip — needs metadata. Metadata enables everything from internal search to external distribution, connecting related files and keeping teams aligned.

Without solid metadata, assets get lost, duplicated, or misused. Teams struggle with basic asset management, such as locating approved content, tracking usage history, or enforcing licensing terms. This becomes a bigger issue at scale, especially for teams managing multi-terabyte libraries across locations or clients.

When done manually, metadata tagging kills productivity. 

Logging names, locations, and content details by hand is time-consuming and error-prone. One person tags a shot “NYC skyline,” whereas another tags it “New York aerial.” Now your editors can’t find either without guessing at random.

AI makes metadata scalable by instantly analyzing and tagging large volumes of content. It can detect faces, identify objects, transcribe dialogue, and recognize scenes.

What AI metadata tagging actually does 

At its core, AI metadata tagging automates how content is categorized, labeled, and discovered—saving your team hours of manual work and unlocking fast, reliable search.

With the right automated tagging strategy, you can: 

Make content instantly searchable

AI transforms raw footage into searchable assets. For example, a video from a product shoot can be tagged with the featured brand, product model, presenter names, and spoken phrases. This means editors can simply search with relevant words or phrases rather than scrubbing through hours of content. 

Cut repetitive manual work

AI handles the tasks that drain your team’s time. 

Instead of logging each shot manually, the system detects people, locations, and keywords on its own. No more frame-by-frame tagging or endless, cumbersome spreadsheets. This frees up editors to focus on storytelling, not admin work, which can reduce costly delays in post-production. 

Support better version control

Metadata helps track revisions, exports, and usage rights. AI-generated tags stay consistent across versions, so there’s no confusion about which version includes a product name blur or updated voiceover.

Improve creative handoffs

With searchable metadata, editors can jump straight to the right clips. Producers don’t have to explain what’s in “you know – that one shot, from the second day.” Everyone works faster because everyone finds what they need without going back and forth.

How to evaluate AI tools for metadata tagging

Not all AI tagging tools are created equal. To find one that actually improves your workflow, start by evaluating how well it balances precision with flexibility:

Look for accuracy and adaptability

It seems like a new AI tool is introduced every week. 

As you evaluate tools, choose one that recognizes the types of content you work with. Can it handle branded content, multi-language dialogue, or aerial footage? Can you fine-tune or train it to fit your workflow?

Make sure it integrates with your stack

Your AI tagging tool should work with your existing digital asset management (DAM) or media asset management (MAM) system. Integration ensures metadata flows where it’s needed and doesn’t create extra steps for your team.

Prioritize transparency

AI tagging shouldn’t be a black box. You need to review, confirm, and edit tags as needed. Incorrect metadata is just as bad as no metadata. Make sure your team uses a tool that allows them to stay in control.

AI metadata tagging from Iconik 

AI has a lot of promise when it comes to automating manual tasks, but metadata tagging is where it starts paying off immediately. It saves time, improves workflows, and gives media teams the visibility they need to move faster.

With Iconik’s AI, you can automatically tag assets with metadata, transcribe speech to text, recognize faces, and more. 

Want to see how our AI tagging works in action? Schedule an Iconik demo.