Best AI tools to create videos and ads: Higgsfield, Runway, Veo, HeyGen and Arcads compared
What each AI video tool does, which ad formats it suits, its limits and the legal obligations to know before publishing.
By Rubén García · October 11, 2026 · 3 min
AI video tools fall into three groups: scene generators (Higgsfield, Runway, Veo, Pika), avatar platforms (HeyGen, Synthesia) and ready-to-publish ad generators (Arcads, Creatify). Each group solves a different production problem, and mixing them up is the most common mistake when choosing.
Scene generators: Higgsfield, Runway and Veo
A scene generator turns text or an image into a few seconds of video. It's useful for visual assets, backgrounds, transitions or product shots that would be expensive to film.
- Higgsfield: focuses on preset cinematic camera moves (dollies, zooms, orbits) and social-first effects. Its strength is that you pick the move instead of describing it.
- Runway: a broader suite with text or image to video plus editing tools (background removal, shot extension) for production teams.
- Google Veo: Google DeepMind's model generates scenes with synced audio (dialogue, effects and ambience), something most models didn't do natively.
Avatars and virtual presenters: HeyGen and Synthesia
Avatar platforms create videos with an AI presenter from a written script. They're useful to explain a product, train a team or translate the same video into several languages.
HeyGen stands out for lip-synced video translation: the person appears to speak the new language. Synthesia leans towards corporate training and internal communication, with corporate templates and brand control. We cover the risks of this format in our guide to AI UGC avatars.
Ready-to-publish ads: Arcads and Creatify
Arcads produces UGC-style ads (content that looks user-filmed) with AI actors, making it easy to test many hooks with the same script. Creatify starts from a product URL and proposes script, avatar and several vertical ad versions.
Quick comparison by use case
3
tool families: scenes, avatars and full ads
Audio
Veo natively generates sound synced with the image
Multilingual
HeyGen translates videos with lip sync
URL → ad
Creatify builds versions from the product page
How to choose for the ad you need
- I need striking product or ambience shots: scene generator (Higgsfield, Runway, Veo).
- I need someone explaining on camera, in several languages: avatar (HeyGen, Synthesia).
- I need many vertical ad variants to test: ad generator (Arcads, Creatify).
- I need to edit and caption everything: AI editor such as CapCut or Runway.
Legal and transparency aspects
Meta, TikTok and YouTube ask creators to label realistic AI-generated or altered content. In the EU, Article 50 of the AI Act introduces transparency obligations: providers must mark synthetic content in a detectable way and whoever publishes it must disclose deepfakes. Before using avatars or voices, also check each tool's commercial usage rights.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best AI tool for video ads?
It depends on the format. For UGC ads with virtual actors, Arcads or Creatify; for cinematic scenes, Higgsfield, Runway or Veo; for presenters speaking to camera, HeyGen or Synthesia.
Do I have to disclose that an ad was made with AI?
Often, yes. Meta, TikTok and YouTube require labels on realistic AI content, and the EU AI Act requires disclosure when realistic content has been artificially generated or manipulated.
What's the difference between Higgsfield and Runway?
Higgsfield specializes in preset camera moves and social effects; Runway is a broader video generation and editing suite for production teams.
