API Changelog & Updates

A comprehensive history of updates, new features, and improvements to the Runway API. Create an account to get started today.

SDR to HDR in Runway API

August 20th, 2026 - Ruby (ruby) is now available via the Runway API. Convert any SDR video — uploads or generations from any model — into true HDR, delivered as 10-bit HEVC in HDR10 (outputFormat: "hdr10", the default) or HLG ("hlg") with BT.2020 signaling and measured HDR10 metadata, as a BT.2020 + PQ ProRes .mov editorial mezzanine ("hdr_prores"; tier selectable with proresProfile — 422, 422 HQ, or 4444, defaulting to 422 HQ), or as a .zip of half-float OpenEXR frames carrying the upconverted signal as linear BT.2020 light for compositing ("hdr_exr_sequence"; the zip includes colorimetry and provenance sidecars, plus audio.wav when the source has audio). The conversion preserves the source’s own pixels and audio: brightness is extended into HDR headroom with a bounded, color-preserving grade, and nothing is re-rendered. Inputs must be SDR (HDR-tagged videos are rejected), at most 40 seconds, and under 4096 pixels per side. Billed at 20 credits per second, or 40 credits per second when the source is larger than 4 megapixels (roughly 4K). Use the /v1/video_to_hdr endpoint to get started.

HDR output formats for Gen-4.5 and Aleph 2.0

August 20th, 2026 - Gen-4.5 text to video and image to video can now deliver directly in HDR and post-production formats via outputFormat: hdr10 and hlg streaming HDR, sdr_rec709_10bit for 10-bit SDR grading, and mastering-grade hdr_pq_12bit_master (12-bit lossless), hdr_prores (ProRes 422 HQ), hdr_png_sequence (bit-exact 16-bit frames), and hdr_exr_sequence (half-float OpenEXR frames as linear BT.2020 light, compositor-native). HDR outputs are true HDR renders — graded into BT.2020 with measured HDR10 metadata — not tone-mapped afterward. Aleph 2.0 adds sdr_rec709_10bit for 10-bit SDR delivery; to deliver an Aleph edit in HDR, chain it through /v1/video_to_hdr. These formats are being enabled progressively per account. Non-mp4 formats add 5 credits per second for prores and png_sequence, or 20 credits per second for 10-bit and deeper profiles (including EXR), rising to 40 credits per second when the output is larger than 4 megapixels (roughly 4K). See Professional and HDR output formats to get started.

Seedance 2.5 1080p

August 15th, 2026 - Seedance 2.5 (seedance2_5) now supports 1080p output on text-to-video, image-to-video, and video-to-video. Pass a 1080p ratio such as 1920:1080 (16:9) or 1080:1920 (9:16). 4K stays on Seedance 2.0. Billed at 68 credits per second of output and 34 credits per second of input and reference video. The 80 credit minimum is unchanged. Use the text to video, image to video, and video to video endpoints to get started.

Grok Imagine Image 2 in Runway API

August 11th, 2026 - Grok Imagine Image 2 (grok_imagine_image_2) is now available via the Runway API. Generate images from text with optional reference images, an edit mode for direct image editing or combining references, quality of low or medium (default medium), outputCount from 1–4, and fixed width:height ratios across 1K and 2K plus auto_1k and auto_2k. Up to 3 reference images. Billed at 4–8 credits per image by quality and resolution, plus 1 credit per reference image charged once per request (not per output). Use the text to image endpoint to get started.

Grok Imagine Video 1.5 in Runway API

August 7th, 2026 - Grok Imagine Video 1.5 (grok_imagine_1_5) is now available via the Runway API. Generate videos from text or a start-frame image with optional native audio, prompt-addressable image references, and audio references. Text-to-video supports ratio values 1:1, 16:9, 9:16, 4:3, 3:4, 3:2, and 2:3, with resolution of 480p, 720p, or 1080p (default 480p). Durations are 1–15 seconds. Up to 7 image references and 3 audio references (each 3–15 seconds); audio references require at least one image reference, and requests with image references are capped at 720p. Image-to-video uses a single first frame (promptImage); output aspect ratio follows the input image. Billed at 10 credits per second at 480p, 16 at 720p, and 29 at 1080p, plus 1 credit per image or audio reference (including an image-to-video start frame). Use the text to video and image to video endpoints to get started.

Seedance 2.5 in Runway API

August 7th, 2026 - Seedance 2.5 (seedance2_5) is now available via the Runway API. Generate cinematic videos from text, images, or video with optional generated audio, larger reference budgets, and durations from 4–30 seconds at 480p or 720p. Text-to-video can run from references alone (omit promptText when at least one image, video, or audio reference is provided). Video-to-video accepts mode: "reference" (default) or mode: "extend" — extend requires promptText and matches the input aspect ratio, so ratio may not be provided. Reference limits: up to 30 images, 10 videos, and 10 audio clips (combined reference video and audio duration must stay under 30 seconds; video-to-video reserves one video slot for promptVideo). Input videos must be at least 480p. At 480p, ratios 864:496 and 496:864 deliver standard 854×480 / 480×854 output rather than the literal pixel counts. Billed at 30 credits per second of output at 720p and 20 at 480p, plus 15 (720p) or 10 (480p) credits per second of input and reference video; reference images and audio are free. Minimum 80 credits per generation. Use the text to video, image to video, and video to video endpoints to get started.

MiniMax H3 in Runway API

August 5th, 2026 - MiniMax H3 (hailuo3) is now available via the Runway API. Generate videos from text, images, or video with support for keyframe control, reference images, reference videos, and reference audio. MiniMax H3 supports text-to-video, image-to-video, and video-to-video generation modes, with durations from 5–15 seconds and output at 768P or 2K. Billed at 10 credits per second at 768P and 15 credits per second at 2K, plus 2 credits per reference image; reference video is billed at the same per-second rate as output (capped at 15 seconds). Use the text to video, image to video, and video to video endpoints to get started.

Gen-3 Alpha Turbo and Gen-4 Aleph sunset

July 30th, 2026 - Gen-3 Alpha Turbo (gen3a_turbo) and Gen-4 Aleph (gen4_aleph) are no longer available via the Runway API. Requests that use these model identifiers will fail. Upgrade from Gen-3 Alpha Turbo to Gen-4.5 (best quality) or Gen-4 Turbo (fastest), and from Gen-4 Aleph to Aleph 2.0 (aleph2). See available models and pricing for current options.

Eleven v3 in Runway API

July 30th, 2026 - Eleven v3 (eleven_v3) is now available via the Runway API. Generate expressive speech with audio tags like [laughs] and [whispers] in the script. Same Runway preset voices as Multilingual v2. Billed at 1 credit per 50 characters, with a 1 credit minimum. Use the text to speech endpoint to get started.

Organization workspace reporting

July 28th, 2026 - Organizations on an enterprise plan can now export per-generation credit usage and audit log history for the Runway web app workspaces linked to their API project. /v1/organization/webapp/usage returns one row per generation with the credits it cost, and /v1/organization/webapp/audit_logs returns audit entries that can be filtered by actions, actorEmails, and workspaceIds, with a companion endpoint for the full detail of a single event. See the workspace reporting guide and the Organization API reference to get started.

Model Router

July 23rd, 2026 - Model Router is now available in the Runway API. Create a saved routing configuration once and reference it by configId to route video, image, and audio generations to the best model for your use case — the router filters to eligible models and selects one based on your optimization preference (cost, latency, or quality), so you never have to name a model. Configure model allow and deny lists and optional per-modality credit ceilings (video, image, audio), and preview routing decisions with dryRun before generating. See Model Routers and the Model Router API reference to get started.

Veo negative prompt

July 10th, 2026 - Optional negativePrompt is now available on veo3, veo3.1, and veo3.1_fast text-to-video and image-to-video requests. Pass text describing what should not appear in the output (up to 1,000 characters). Omit the field to use Runway’s default negative prompt. Use the text to video and image to video endpoints to get started.

Seedream 5.0 Lite in Runway API

July 10th, 2026 - Seedream 5.0 Lite (seedream5_lite) is now available via the Runway API. Generate images from text with optional reference images for multi-image fusion and interactive editing. Supports prompts up to 4,000 characters, up to 14 reference images, outputCount from 1–4, optional outputFormat (png or jpeg, default png), and 16 ratio values across 2K and 3K at eight aspect ratios (1:1, 4:3, 3:4, 16:9, 9:16, 3:2, 2:3, 21:9). Billed at 4 credits per image at any resolution, multiplied by outputCount. Use the text to image endpoint to get started.

Seedream 5.0 Pro in Runway API

July 8th, 2026 - Seedream 5.0 Pro (seedream5_pro) is now available via the Runway API. Generate images from text with optional reference images for multi-image fusion and interactive editing. Supports prompts up to 4,000 characters, up to 10 reference images, outputCount from 1–4, optional outputFormat (png or jpeg, default png), and 14 fixed ratio values across 1K and 2K at seven aspect ratios (1:1, 4:3, 3:4, 16:9, 9:16, 3:2, 2:3), plus auto_1k and auto_2k to let the model pick aspect ratio at a fixed resolution tier. Billed at 5 credits per 1K image and 9 credits per 2K image, multiplied by outputCount. Use the text to image endpoint to get started.

Gemini Omni Flash in Runway API

July 1st, 2026 - Gemini Omni Flash (gemini_omni_flash) is now available via the Runway API. Generate videos from text, a first-frame image, or an existing video, with output at 720p and optional generated audio. Text-to-video and image-to-video support durations from 3–10 seconds (default 5) at landscape 1280:720 or portrait 720:1280. Video-to-video edits an input video of up to 10 seconds — output matches the input’s duration and orientation — and accepts up to 5 reference images to guide the edit. Text-to-video and image-to-video are billed at 10 credits per second (plus 1 credit for the first-frame image on image-to-video), and video-to-video at 11 credits per second of input video plus 1 credit per reference image. Use the text to video, image to video, and video to video endpoints to get started.

Seed Audio 1.0 in Runway API

June 30th, 2026 - Seed Audio 1.0 (seed_audio) is now available via the Runway API. Generate speech and sound effects from text, with optional audio references of up to 30 seconds to guide the output. Seed Audio 1.0 supports up to 120 seconds of generated audio and can output in WAV, MP3, and Ogg Opus formats. It is billed at 0.25 credits per second, with a 5 credit minimum per generation. Use the text to speech and sound effect endpoints to get started.

Seedance 2.0 Mini in Runway API

June 26th, 2026 - Seedance 2.0 Mini (seedance2_mini) is now available via the Runway API. Generate videos from text, images, or video with support for keyframe control, reference images, reference videos, and generated audio. Seedance 2.0 Mini supports image-to-video, text-to-video, and video-to-video generation modes, with durations from 4–15 seconds and output at 480p or 720p. Seedance 2.0 Mini is billed at 16 credits per second, with a 64 credit minimum per generation. Use the text to video, image to video, and video to video endpoints to get started.

Ad Localization recipe

June 25th, 2026 - The Ad Localization recipe (ad_localization) is now available via the Runway API. Localize an existing ad image for a target language while preserving visual creative and layout. Billed at 21 credits per localized image. Use the Ad Localization recipe guide and API reference to get started.

4K support for Seedance 2.0

June 24th, 2026 - Seedance 2.0 (seedance2) now supports 4K output. Six new 4K ratio values are available across the text to video, image to video, and video to video endpoints: 3840:1646 (21:9), 3840:2160 (16:9), 3840:2880 (4:3), 3840:3840 (1:1), 2880:3840 (3:4), and 2160:3840 (9:16). These are in addition to the existing 480p, 720p, and 1080p options, and the default ratio remains 1280:720. 4K generations are billed at 150 credits per second.

Magnific Video Upscaler

June 11th, 2026 - Magnific Video Upscaler (magnific_video_upscaler_creative) is now available via the Runway API. Upscale input videos up to 30 seconds to 720p, 1k, 2k (default), or 4k output resolution, with optional controls for creativity, sharpen, smart grain, flavor, and fps boost. Always set model to magnific_video_upscaler_creative on the video upscale endpoint. Billing is per output frame — see video upscale pricing.

Seedance 2.0 Fast in Runway API

June 5th, 2026 - Seedance 2.0 Fast (seedance2_fast) is now available via the Runway API. Generate videos faster from text, images, or video with support for keyframe control, reference images, reference videos, and generated audio. Seedance 2.0 Fast supports image-to-video, text-to-video, and video-to-video generation modes, with durations from 4–15 seconds and output at 480p or 720p. Use the text to video, image to video, and video to video endpoints to get started.

Aleph 2.0 in Runway API

June 2nd, 2026 - Aleph 2.0 is now available via the Runway API. Edit existing videos with text prompts and optional keyframe images placed at specific timestamps. Aleph 2.0 supports input videos from 2–30 seconds, up to 5 keyframe images, and optional content moderation settings. Use the model identifier aleph2 with the video to video endpoint. The aleph2_alpha identifier remains available as a deprecated alias.

HappyHorse 1.0

May 29th, 2026 - HappyHorse 1.0 (happyhorse_1_0) is now available via the Runway API. Generate videos from text or from a first-frame image with durations from 3–15 seconds. Text-to-video supports 10 output dimensions across 720p and 1080p. Image-to-video preserves your input aspect ratio and accepts an optional motion prompt. Use the text to video and image to video endpoints to get started.

Seedance 2.0 in Runway API

May 28th, 2026 - Seedance 2.0 is now available via the Runway API. Generate high-quality videos from text, images, or video with support for keyframe control, reference images, reference videos, and generated audio. Seedance 2.0 supports image-to-video, text-to-video, and video-to-video generation modes, with durations from 4–15 seconds.

Gemini 3 Pro Image (Nano Banana Pro)

April 30th, 2026 - Gemini 3 Pro Image, also known as Nano Banana Pro (gemini_image3_pro), is now available via the Runway API. Generate images with up to 5,500-character prompts and up to 14 reference images, at 1K, 2K, or 4K resolution across 10 aspect ratios. Use the text to image endpoint to get started.

GPT Image 2

April 23rd, 2026 - OpenAI’s GPT Image 2 (gpt_image_2) is now available via the Runway API. Supports up to 16 reference images (with optional prompt-referenceable tags), 30 width:height ratios across 1K, 2K, and 4K tiers plus an auto resolution, and tiered pricing by resolution and quality. Unlike gpt_image_1, transparent backgrounds are not supported. Use the text to image endpoint to get started.

Gen-4.5 in Runway API

February 10th, 2026 - Gen-4.5 is now available via the Runway API. Generate high-quality videos from text alone or from images with improved quality and control. Gen-4.5 supports both text-to-video and image-to-video generation modes, with durations from 2-10 seconds. Learn more at Gen-4.5 announcement.

ElevenLabs Clean Audio

October 16th, 2025 - ElevenLabs Voice Isolation is available directly via the Runway API. Strip background noise from any recording and isolate crisp, clear speech—built for film, podcast, and interview workflows.

ElevenLabs Voice Dubbing

October 16th, 2025 - ElevenLabs Dubbing is available directly via the Runway API. Translate your content into 29 languages with AI-generated speech that maintains the speaker’s original voice characteristics and emotional tone.

Google Veo 3.1

October 15th, 2025 - Google Veo 3.1 text to image and image to video are now available in the Runway API. Generate with even greater fidelity and control with first and last keyframe support, the new Reference to Video feature and support for full 1080p outputs. Learn more at the link below.

ElevenLabs text to Sound Effects

October 8th, 2025 - Flexible generation times for Runway video models are now available via the Runway API. Choose any duration from 2-10 seconds using Gen-4 Turbo. Pay only for what you generate.

Flexible Generation Length

October 8th, 2025 - Flexible generation times for Runway video models are now available via the Runway API. Choose any duration from 2-10 seconds using Gen-4 Turbo. Pay only for what you generate.

Text to Speech

September 25th, 2025 - Starting today, ElevenLabs’ Multilingual v2 Text to Speech is available directly via the Runway API. Generate natural, emotionally-aware speech in 29 languages while maintaining consistent voice quality and personality.

API Playground

September 24th, 2025 - Today we’re launching the Runway API Playground—a new interactive environment that lets developers test and refine their integrations before going to production. Build with confidence and ship faster. The Runway API Playground provides a full sandbox environment with all our latest models.

Third Party Models

September 23rd, 2025 - Select third party models are now available via the Runway API. All designed to make your creative workflows even more robust and controllable within Runway. Starting with Google Veo3 and Nano Banana (gemini_2.5_flash).

Launch Gen-4 Image Turbo in Runway API

August 19th, 2025 - Introducing our fastest image model. Generate with reference images in 10 seconds or less. Gen-4 Image Turbo costs 2.5-4x less than non-turbo and achieves a 93.3% quality Dreambench++ Score compared to standard Gen-4 Image generations.

Aleph in Runway API

August 1st, 2025 - Aleph is now available via the Runway API, allowing you to bring an entirely new to way to edit, transform and generate videos directly into your apps, products, platforms and websites.

Act-Two in Runway API

July 21st, 2025 - Act-Two is now available via the Runway API, allowing you to bring our most advanced motion capture directly into your apps, products, platforms and websites.

Runway MCP Server

June 13th, 2025 - Our MCP server is now available on GitHub. Now you can connect Claude, or any MCP-compatible assistant, directly to Runway’s generation capabilities, allowing you to build AI agents that can generate videos, images and more as part of automated workflows.

Launch Gen-4 Image in Runway API

May 16th, 2025 - Gen-4 Image is now available via the Runway API, allowing anyone to integrate its powerful multimodal generation capabilities directly into their apps, products, platforms and websites.