Seedance 2.5 vs Grok Imagine Video 1.5: API parameters
Request parameters each model lists on EmpirioLabs, with the allowed values or range where one applies. A dash marks a parameter the model does not list.
Seedance 2.5 vs Grok Imagine Video 1.5: limits and notes
Seedance 2.5
Next-generation Seedance built for long-form storytelling: one request can produce a coherent clip of up to 30 seconds, draw on up to 50 reference assets, and edit or extend existing footage.
Modes
Text to video, first frame, or first and last frame.
Multimodal reference to video from up to 30 images, 10 videos, and 10 audio clips. Audio-only input works on its own.
To edit an attached clip or continue it, describe that in your prompt. The model reads the intent from your wording.
Output
480p, 720p, and 1080p at 24fps, 4 to 30 seconds, with native synchronized audio.
MP4 by default. MOV carries higher color precision for grading and compositing, and some players cannot open it.
When you supply a first frame, the output follows that image's aspect ratio, so aspect_ratio stays adaptive. Reference jobs, including ones with a reference video, accept any ratio.
Draft mode
Set draft to true to render a 480p draft while you are still trying shots. Drafts render at 480p only.
The response returns the draft's id as usage.draft_task_id. Send that back as draft_task_id to render the same shot at 1080p.
The final render takes the prompt, reference assets, duration, aspect ratio, seed and audio setting from the draft, so anything you send alongside draft_task_id is ignored. A draft stays promotable for 7 days.
Input limits
Images: jpeg, png, webp, bmp, tiff, gif, heic, or heif, 300 to 6000 px per side, under 30 MB each.
Videos: MP4 or MOV, 2 to 30 seconds each and 30 seconds in total, under 200 MB each.
Audio: WAV or MP3, 2 to 30 seconds each and 30 seconds in total, under 15 MB each.
Reference uploads that contain real human faces are rejected by the model. To use your own face, email support@empiriolabs.ai.
Billing
Without a reference video, you are billed per second of generated video at the rate for the output resolution.
With a reference video, the model prices the reference clip's seconds alongside the generated seconds, at the lower video-input rate. Billed seconds are therefore reference duration plus output duration, so a request that includes a reference video costs more in total than the same output generated from text alone.
Draft mode is not a discounted rate. A draft bills as a normal 480p generation and its final bills as a normal 1080p generation, so the saving comes from trying shots at 480p and rendering only your pick at 1080p.
Worked example at 480p: a 4 second clip from a text prompt bills 4 seconds. A 4 second clip generated from a 5 second reference video bills 9 seconds at the video-input rate.
Uploaded media preprocessing
Video inputs are capped to 30 seconds.
Uploaded video inputs are normalized to provider-compatible MP4 when needed. Set preprocess_video to false to send a clip through untouched.
Grok Imagine Video 1.5
Generates video from a text prompt on its own, from a source image, or from up to seven reference images that keep characters and objects consistent across the shot.
Modes
Text-to-video: send a prompt with no image.
Image-to-video: add one image and it becomes the starting frame.
Reference-to-video: add two or more images (up to seven) to carry their subjects into a new scene. Tag them in the prompt as <IMAGE_1>, <IMAGE_2>, and so on.
Example reference-to-video prompt
<IMAGE_1> and <IMAGE_2> walking together through a neon-lit street at night.
The mode is detected from what you send, and can be set explicitly with the mode parameter.
Defaults
10 second duration (1 to 15 seconds supported)
720p output (480p, 720p, or 1080p)
Aspect ratio follows the source image for image-to-video, otherwise 16:9
Resolution
1080p is available for text-to-video and image-to-video. Reference-to-video supports up to 720p.
Controls
Supports prompt, mode, a source image or reference images (URL or upload), duration, resolution, and aspect ratio.
Billing
Charged per second of generated video at the selected resolution (higher resolutions cost more per second), plus a per-image fee for each image you supply. Text-to-video has no image fee.
A request that fails validation or errors out before any video is produced is not billed.
A video that is produced but then blocked by content policy is still billed. This follows xAI usage policy, which charges for the generation even when the output is blocked by the content safety check. Keep prompts and source images within the usage policy to avoid this.
How to call Seedance 2.5 and Grok Imagine Video 1.5
Seedance 2.5 runs through POST /v1/videos/generations. The request returns a job_id right away; poll GET /v1/jobs/{job_id} until the job completes and read the output URLs from the result. Both models are called through the same endpoint. Set model to seedance-2-5 or grok-imagine-video-1-5. Get an API key from the EmpirioLabs dashboard.
cURL: submit the job
curl https://api.empiriolabs.ai/v1/videos/generations \
-H "Authorization: Bearer $EMPIRIOLABS_API_KEY" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-d '{
"model": "seedance-2-5",
"prompt": "Describe what you want Seedance 2.5 to generate."
}'
Seedance 2.5 vs Grok Imagine Video 1.5: tests and guides
Prompt tests and comparison runs that cover both models.
Seedance 2.5 vs Grok Imagine Video 1.5: common questions
What is the difference between Seedance 2.5 and Grok Imagine Video 1.5?
Seedance 2.5 is the newer release (Aug 7, 2026); Grok Imagine Video 1.5 was released on Jun 16, 2026. Input types only Seedance 2.5 accepts: Audio, Video. Capabilities listed only for Seedance 2.5: video editing, multimodal, audio sync, camera control, character consistency, draft mode. The specs, rate cards, and parameters on this page come from the live EmpirioLabs catalog.
Which is newer, Seedance 2.5 or Grok Imagine Video 1.5?
Seedance 2.5 is the newer release (Aug 7, 2026); Grok Imagine Video 1.5 was released on Jun 16, 2026.
Which has the lower rate, Seedance 2.5 or Grok Imagine Video 1.5?
The two models are priced on different units or tiers, so compare the live rate cards on this page. They always match what the API charges.
Can I switch between Seedance 2.5 and Grok Imagine Video 1.5 without rebuilding my integration?
Yes. Both models use POST /v1/videos/generations with the same EmpirioLabs API key, so most integrations switch by changing the model value. Check the parameters table on this page first if you rely on a model-specific parameter.
Can I try Seedance 2.5 and Grok Imagine Video 1.5 in the browser before integrating?
Yes. Open each model in the EmpirioLabs playground and run the same prompt on both, with the parameters the API exposes.
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