DaVinci Resolve 21: How to Use the New AI Tools for Faster, Smarter Editing

DaVinci Resolve 21 is packed with new AI-powered tools, but they’re not trying to replace you. Instead, they work more like an offline assistant to help you find clips faster, fix mistakes, and add high-end polish to your edits—without sending your media to the cloud.

In this guide, you’ll see where to find the most useful AI features in Resolve 21 and how to start using them in real projects.

AI Speech Generator: Built-In Text-to-Speech and Voice Cloning

Resolve 21 now includes a native AI speech generator so you can create voice-overs directly on your timeline—no external service required.

Where to Find It

Timeline > AI Tools > Speech Generator

This opens a window where you can type short text and generate an audio file that appears as a clip on your timeline.

How It Works

1. Type your line (for example: “Welcome to Creative Video Tips.”).

2. Choose a voice model:

– Use one of Resolve Studio’s built-in voices, or

– Click the voice model dropdown and load a custom voice by selecting a short audio file of a voice you have permission to use.

3. Click Generate to create the voice-over clip.

The tool also lets you tweak:

– Speed – how fast the line is read.

– Pitch – higher or lower voice tone.

– Variation – how closely it matches the rhythm and intonation of your reference voice sample.

The generated audio is stored in your project’s media location (set in Project Settings > Master Settings > Working Folders), so it behaves like any other media file.

AI Intelli Search: Instantly Find Shots, People, and Lines

Intelli Search is one of the most powerful new AI features in Resolve 21. It uses machine learning to scan your project so you can search visually, by transcript, or by metadata.

What You Can Search

Intelli Search supports three search types across your entire project:

– Visual Search – find objects, people, or elements in the frame (e.g., “dog”, “car”, “city”).

– Transcription Search – search through transcribed dialogue to find specific sound bites.

– Metadata Search – the traditional search based on clip metadata.

Step 1: Run AI Analysis

Before you can search, Resolve needs to analyze your clips:

1. In the Media Pool, select the clips you want to index (start with a smaller subset to keep things fast).

2. At the top of the media pool, open the dropdown next to the new AI Analysis button.

3. Choose Run on Selected Clips.

4. Click the AI Analysis button to open the panel.

Here you’ll see options for:

– Intelli Search

– Slate detection

– Transcription for text-based editing

– Audio classification

To index for visual search only, turn off everything except Intelli Search and click Analyze. Resolve will scan every frame and identify objects and faces (you can disable face detection if you want faster analysis).

Step 2: Run an Intelli Search

Once analysis is done:

1. Click the magnifying glass icon in the media pool.

2. Type what you’re looking for (e.g., “dog”).

3. Choose what to search:

– Visuals only

– Transcribed audio

– Metadata

– Or all of the above

You can also choose how results are displayed:

– Segments – subclip-style ranges where the object actually appears.

– Full Clips – the entire source clip.

Segment view is especially powerful: in list view, expanding a clip shows only the ranges where, for example, the dog is visible. Everything else is trimmed out, saving you from scrubbing through long takes.

Save Results as Smart Bins

You can turn an Intelli Search into a Smart Bin using the new icon to the right of the search field. Smart Bins are dynamic, metadata-driven bins that live at the bottom of the media pool and automatically update as your project changes.

In the three-dot menu, you can also switch between Faster and Better modes. Better mode may improve accuracy but requires re-analysis of your clips.

If you work with large photo or video libraries, especially for stylized content like nostalgia edits, Intelli Search pairs nicely with workflows such as those in bulk-creating aesthetic AI videos.

AI Cine Focus: Realistic Depth of Field and Rack Focus

AI Cine Focus is a new effect that creates photorealistic depth of field and lens blur, even from footage where everything was shot in focus (like many smartphone clips).

Why It’s Different from a Regular Blur

Cine Focus is designed to handle edges and subject separation far better than traditional blur tools. It uses AI to understand depth, and it even includes built-in denoise and regrain controls to maintain a cinematic texture.

Basic Setup with an External Depth Map

For smooth playback, especially on slower machines, it’s best to use Cine Focus with a cached depth map:

Step 1: Start with a deep-focus shot
Use a clip where most of the frame is in focus (typical phone footage or wide shots).

Step 2: Create a depth map node

1. On the Color page, right-click in the node graph and add a new Corrector node as a branch from the source.

2. Add the AI Depth Map effect to this node.

3. Right-click the node and enable Node Cache.

4. In the top menu, go to Playback > Render Cache > User so Resolve will pre-render heavy AI nodes.

Step 3: Add Cine Focus

1. Add a new node after your main balance or correction nodes.

2. Press Shift+Space, search for Cine Focus, and add it.

3. In the Cine Focus settings, open the Depth Map section and set the source to Alpha Input.

4. Connect the green output (alpha) from the depth map node to the blue alpha input of the Cine Focus node.

Step 4: Adjust focus and animate rack focus

1. Click Focus to preview what stays sharp.

2. Use the Distance and Depth of Field sliders to control what’s in focus and how strong the blur is.

3. To create a rack focus, set a keyframe on the Distance control at the start, move the playhead, then adjust the distance again so focus shifts to a new subject (for example, from a background to a peanut butter logo).

4. Switch back to Result to see the final look.

AI Ultra Sharpen: Rescue Soft Focus Shots

When a critical detail—like a logo or product—ends up slightly soft, AI Ultra Sharpen can often save the shot without a full VFX replacement.

On the Color page:

1. Add the AI Ultra Sharpen effect to a node.

2. Increase the Amount just enough to bring back detail without creating halos or noise.

3. If you only want to sharpen a specific area (like a car badge), draw a Power Window around it and track the window so the sharpening follows the object.

This is especially handy for product work or client projects where reshoots aren’t possible.

AI Face Tools: Reshaping, Blemish Fixing, and Age Transform

Resolve 21 adds several AI tools focused on faces, all found on the Color page under the Resolve FX Refine category.

Face Reshaper

The Face Reshaper lets you subtly adjust facial proportions over time without manual warping or complex VFX.

1. Drag Face Reshaper onto a node.

2. Click to detect faces in the frame.

3. Track forward and backward so the effect follows the motion.

4. Disable the overlay to better see your changes.

5. Adjust controls like Face Shape (for a slightly slimmer face) or Eye Size (a classic beauty adjustment).

Used lightly, this can create a very natural enhancement. Toggling the effect on and off makes the difference clear.

Blemish Removal

The AI Blemish Removal tool is designed to remove small imperfections—like zits or patches of redness—while keeping skin texture intact.

1. Add Blemish Removal to a node.

2. Target the area you want to fix (for example, a red blotch under the eye).

3. Adjust the strength until the blemish is reduced but the skin still looks natural.

It tends to work best when your project is set up with a proper timeline color space, so make sure your color management is configured correctly.

Face Age Transformer

The Face Age Transformer uses the same face detection system to make a person look older or younger.

1. Add the effect to a node and track the face.

2. Set the subject’s current age.

3. Use the Age Offset slider:

– Positive values add years (ageing the subject).

– Negative values remove years (making them look younger).

Used in moderation, this can be a powerful beauty or storytelling tool—and also a fun way to preview how someone might look in the future.

AI Slate Detector: Automatic Slate Markers

The AI Slate Detector automatically finds slates in your footage and adds duration markers where they appear, making it easier to navigate and organize takes.

You can run it in two ways:

– From the AI Clip Analysis panel (alongside Intelli Search and transcription), or

– By right-clicking a clip in the Media Pool, choosing AI Tools > Analyze for Slate.

Once processed, Resolve adds markers over the slate ranges, speeding up logging and prep work.

AI Motion Deblur: Remove Motion Blur from Clips

AI Motion Deblur helps when you need a cleaner frame from footage that has strong motion blur—especially useful when pulling stills from video.

On the Edit page:

1. Right-click the clip that needs blur reduction.

2. Go to AI Tools > Remove Motion Blur.

3. Resolve will process and generate a new clip with reduced motion blur (similar to a render-in-place operation).

This is particularly helpful when you shot with a 180° shutter and there simply isn’t a naturally sharp frame to grab.

Magic Mask: Now Rendered and Saved

Magic Mask has been upgraded so you no longer need to re-track it every time.

After using Magic Mask on the Color page:

1. Open the three-dot options menu in the Magic Mask panel.

2. Choose Render Magic Mask in Place.

Resolve will create and attach a processed file so the mask is effectively baked in. From then on, you don’t have to re-track, which saves a lot of time on complex shots.

Bringing It All Together

DaVinci Resolve 21’s AI tools are built to work locally, enhance your existing workflow, and give you more time to focus on creative decisions instead of repetitive tasks.

Whether you’re generating quick voice-over pickups, searching massive projects by object or dialogue, simulating cinematic depth of field, or subtly refining faces, these features can dramatically speed up your edit. If you’re already experimenting with AI-driven video workflows—like using free tools to build stylized edits as shown in this guide to free AI video tools—Resolve 21’s new AI suite is a powerful way to keep more of that process inside one application.