What it is
Luma AI, based in Redwood City, California, has retired the Dream Machine name. Its own information page lists Dream Machine and the Ray2 model as deprecated; the consumer product is now the Luma app at app.lumalabs.ai and on iOS, organised around Luma Agents that plan and produce work across video, image and audio models.
The current video model, Ray3.2, released in June 2026, does text-to-video and image-to-video, edits existing footage up to 20 seconds at 1080p, takes up to 16 keyframes, reframes to any aspect ratio, and exports native 16-bit HDR and EXR for colour grading. Uni-1.1 handles images. The same credit pool also reaches third-party models including Veo 3.1, Kling, Seedance, Nano Banana and ElevenLabs audio.
Individual plans are Plus, Pro and Ultra, all with commercial use; Team (with SSO) and Enterprise are by quote. A separate API sells Ray3.2 and Uni-1.1 per generation.
Our review
Luma's advantage is output built for post-production. Ray3.2 exports native 16-bit HDR and EXR files, takes up to 16 keyframes and can modify real footage up to 20 seconds at 1080p, which is what a studio compositing AI shots into a graded edit actually needs. Most rivals stop at an SDR MP4.
The credit maths is steep at the top end. A 5-second Ray3.2 clip at 1080p costs 400 credits in SDR, 800 in HDR and 1,200 with EXR, and a 10-second clip triples each figure. Plus at $30 a month therefore buys about 25 five-second 1080p SDR clips, or eight with EXR. Draft mode at 20 credits is the sensible way to iterate. Third-party models draw on the same pool at their own rates: Veo 3.1 with audio runs at 280 credits a second at 1080p, while Kling 4.0 is 79.
The terms deserve more attention than the features. Luma's terms of service, updated in May 2026, let it use inputs and outputs from free and paid plans to train its models, with that licence perpetual for anything already absorbed, and they offer no training opt-out. Free outputs cannot be used commercially, trial outputs are for internal evaluation only, and Luma may add watermarks or provenance metadata that you are not allowed to remove. Only the API's Scale tier, dedicated capacity sold by the unit, includes a guarantee that data is not used for training. An agency handling client footage under NDA needs that conversation before uploading anything.
Luma Agents, launched in March 2026, push the product towards agencies: describe a campaign and the agent plans and generates assets across Luma's models and Google's. That is convenient, but it also means paying Luma's credit rate to orchestrate Veo or Kling, which Google Flow or Kling's own app sell directly.
Where it earns its place
A colourist at a five-person post-production house
Generate establishing shots that survive a proper grade alongside camera footage
Iterate in Draft mode at 20 credits, then render the chosen take on Ray3.2 at 1080p HDR with EXR at 1,200 credits per 5 seconds. Pro at $90 a month (40,000 credits) covers about 33 final EXR shots. Check the training terms before uploading client plates.
A developer building a video feature into a mobile editing app
Animate user photos into short clips
Call the API's image-to-video endpoint: $0.30 per 5-second 720p clip, $1.20 at 1080p SDR, billed per 5-second block on the pay-as-you-go Build tier. Rate limits apply but are not published; the Scale tier adds an SLA and a no-training guarantee.
A creative lead at a 40-person marketing agency
Produce a multi-asset social campaign from one brief
Luma Agents plan stills, clips and voice across Luma, Veo and ElevenLabs models. Team plans add shared credits and SSO at a quoted price; budget for Veo 3.1 with audio at 280 credits a second at 1080p.
Before you commit
- Setup
- Sign up at app.lumalabs.ai or on iOS and generate with trial credits; commercial use starts with a Plus subscription.
- Integrations
- REST API (POST /v1/generations) for Ray3.2 and Uni-1.1, with a console playground that produces cURL commands; partners include Comfy, Fal and Krea.
- Data and privacy
- Terms allow training on inputs and outputs from all app plans with no opt-out; inputs may be deleted 30 days after a subscription ends; API Scale tier guarantees no training. Certifications not published.
- Cost at scale
- A team producing 200 five-second 1080p SDR clips a month needs 80,000 credits, two Pro plans at $180; the same clips through the API cost $240, or $720 with HDR and EXR.
- Limits
- Video is billed in 5-second blocks; HDR is 2x and HDR plus EXR 3x the SDR rate; API Build-tier rate limits are not published and it carries no latency SLA.
What's good
- Native 16-bit HDR and EXR export on Ray3.2
- Up to 16 keyframes; modifies real footage up to 20 seconds at 1080p
- Veo, Kling, Seedance and ElevenLabs in one credit pool
- Commercial use on every paid plan
- Per-clip API pricing published, from $0.15
What's not
- Inputs and outputs on all app plans can be used for training, with no opt-out
- HDR doubles and EXR triples the credit cost
- Plus buys only about 25 five-second 1080p clips a month
- No free tier beyond trial credits; free outputs not for commercial use
- Dream Machine brand retired, so older guides and plan names are out of date
Best for
Post-production studios and agencies that need HDR-ready AI footage and accept Luma's training terms or buy dedicated API capacity.
Alternatives
Luma (formerly Dream Machine): common questions
- Is Luma (formerly Dream Machine) worth it?
- Luma is the video tool for people who colour-grade, thanks to native HDR and EXR export, but every plan's footage and prompts can be used to train its models, with no opt-out short of the API's Scale tier. We rate it 4.0 out of 5.
- How much does Luma (formerly Dream Machine) cost?
- Plus $30/month (10,000 credits), Pro $90 (40,000), Ultra $300 (150,000); $25/$75/$250 a month billed yearly. Team and Enterprise by quote. Trial credits only, no commercial use on free. API from $0.15 per 5-second 540p clip to $1.20 at 1080p SDR.
- What are the downsides of Luma (formerly Dream Machine)?
- Inputs and outputs on all app plans can be used for training, with no opt-out; hDR doubles and EXR triples the credit cost; plus buys only about 25 five-second 1080p clips a month; no free tier beyond trial credits; free outputs not for commercial use; dream Machine brand retired, so older guides and plan names are out of date.
- Who is Luma (formerly Dream Machine) best for?
- Post-production studios and agencies that need HDR-ready AI footage and accept Luma's training terms or buy dedicated API capacity.
- How much does Luma (formerly Dream Machine) cost for a team or in production?
- A team producing 200 five-second 1080p SDR clips a month needs 80,000 credits, two Pro plans at $180; the same clips through the API cost $240, or $720 with HDR and EXR.
- Is Luma (formerly Dream Machine) safe for company data?
- Terms allow training on inputs and outputs from all app plans with no opt-out; inputs may be deleted 30 days after a subscription ends; API Scale tier guarantees no training. Certifications not published.
- What are the best Luma (formerly Dream Machine) alternatives?
- The closest alternatives we have reviewed are Runway, Google Flow, Kling AI and Higgsfield.
Answers checked Oct 23, 2026.
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