Pricing · 2026
What AI video search costs in 2026
Most video AI is priced per camera per month, which quietly punishes you for having cameras. Here is the arithmetic against a one-time on-premise licence.
The one-time licence
AI Smart Retail is $1,200 once, per machine. Every camera you point at that machine is included — 4 cameras or 100+ cameras cost the same. There is no per-query billing, no seat count, and no cloud storage bill, because the footage and the index stay on the machine in your building.
Five-year cost, worked through
| Site | AI Smart Retail | Per-camera cloud |
|---|---|---|
| 8 cameras | $1,200 once | recurring, every month, forever |
| 20 cameras | $1,200 once | 2.5× the 8-camera bill |
| 100+ cameras | $1,200 once | 12×+ the 8-camera bill |
The shape matters more than any single number: one line grows with your camera count and never stops, the other is paid once and then flat.
Hardware you buy once
A single shop is comfortable on a Mac mini M4 with 24 GB of unified memory. The recommended default build is a workstation with an RTX 5060 Ti (16 GB), which ingests well over a hundred camera streams continuously. You already own the cameras and recorder; nothing needs replacing.
Costs you do not pay
- ›Cloud storage and egress for months of video
- ›Per-camera monthly licences as you add cameras
- ›Per-user seats for managers who only search occasionally
- ›Data-processing agreements and cross-border transfer reviews
Frequently asked
- How much does AI video search cost?
- AI Smart Retail is $1,200 once per machine, with unlimited cameras on that machine and no per-camera or per-seat fees. Cloud video AI is typically billed per camera per month, so a 20-camera site pays every month forever.
- Are there ongoing fees?
- No licence renewal is required to keep searching. The software runs on your own hardware, so your only recurring cost is the electricity and the machine itself.
- What does the hardware cost on top?
- A single shop runs on a Mac mini M4 with 24 GB. The recommended default build is an RTX 5060 Ti with 16 GB, which handles a multi-site camera load on one machine.
- Is there a subscription option?
- Yes, if you prefer operating spend to a one-time purchase — but the one-time licence is cheaper for anyone keeping the system longer than a few months.
Keep reading
- On-premise vs cloud video AI
Privacy, reliability and total cost compared over five years.
- AI security camera search
What you can ask your footage, and how answers are cited.
- Warehouse video AI search
Docks, pick errors and damage disputes answered from footage.