Xumo founder Colin Petrie-Norris is pioneering a new frontier in entertainment with Fairground Entertainment, a studio and streaming service dedicated exclusively to AI-generated television series. Having raised $4 million in seed funding, the startup plans to release its first wave of programming in Q3 2025, focusing initially on reimagined public domain properties like Dracula and Robin Hood. This venture represents a significant evolution in content creation, as AI technology continues to transform how entertainment is produced and consumed.
The big picture: Fairground Entertainment aims to blend original storytelling with generative AI technology, focusing on producing high-quality entertainment that happens to use AI rather than novelty content.
- The company currently has more than a dozen AI-powered TV shows in various stages of production, created by hand-picked AI creators using diverse generative AI platforms and tools.
- While initial projects focus on public domain characters, Petrie-Norris is also in discussions with studios about licensing well-known intellectual properties for AI adaptation.
Why this matters: This represents one of the first dedicated attempts to build a content studio exclusively around AI-generated television programming.
- The venture signals growing confidence in AI’s ability to create commercially viable entertainment beyond experimental or novelty content.
- It establishes a potential new production model that could significantly reduce costs and production timelines compared to traditional television production.
Key details: Petrie-Norris has identified specific genres that lend themselves well to AI generation, including animation, children’s content, horror, and science fiction.
- The $4 million seed round was led by Viant Technology, a programmatic advertising company that was one of the founding partners of Petrie-Norris’s previous venture, Xumo.
- Fairground is based in Laguna Beach, California, and currently employs five people.
Background: Petrie-Norris previously founded Xumo in 2011, a free streaming TV service with dozens of channels.
- He sold Xumo TV to Comcast in 2020 in a deal reportedly worth over $100 million.
- Two years after the acquisition, Comcast and Charter Communications adopted Xumo as the name for their streaming joint venture, which includes the FAST service now called Xumo Play.
What they’re saying: Petrie-Norris emphasizes that content quality, not just AI novelty, will determine the venture’s success.
- “The entertainment industry is at a pivotal moment, driven by the rapid advancement of AI technologies that promise to redefine content creation,” Petrie-Norris said.
- “There will be a curiosity click by consumers because it’s AI — but if it’s not good, they are not coming back. At the end of the day we’re looking for high-quality entertainment.”
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