CapCut

CapCut is a consumer and creator video editing application originally developed by ByteDance. It is widely used for short-form video production, social content creation, and increasingly for AI-assisted editing workflows. CapCut gained a large user base through tight integration with TikTok's creative ecosystem.

CapCut's availability in the United States was restored on January 22, 2026 following a legal and ownership resolution. The app is now operated through TikTok USDS Joint Venture LLC, a new corporate structure with Oracle, Silver Lake, and MGX holding majority ownership. This structure was established to satisfy US national security requirements regarding data handling. All US users were migrated to the new "CapCut US" app by March 2026, replacing the previous ByteDance-operated version.

AI Auto-Edit is a 2026 AI feature that analyzes uploaded footage using scene recognition and speech transcription, assigns quality scores to clips, and automatically assembles a cut based on pacing and content relevance. Users can review and override the auto-assembled edit, or use it as a starting point for manual refinement. This significantly reduces the time required to produce a first cut from raw footage.

AI Story Maker integrates Google Veo 3 for AI video generation directly inside CapCut. Users describe a scene or narrative in text, and Story Maker generates corresponding video segments using Veo 3, which can be combined with captured footage or published as standalone AI-generated content.

Export quality improved with the addition of 2K and 4K export options, raising the output ceiling for professional and semi-professional use cases. CapCut remains free for core editing features. The Pro plan is $9.99 per month and adds AI credits, cloud storage, premium templates, and higher export quality tiers.

CapCut is best for social content creators, short-form video producers, and individuals who need fast AI-assisted editing with minimal technical setup, and for creators who want access to Google Veo 3 video generation inside a consumer-friendly editing environment.