MiniMax H3: guiding AI video with images, clips and sound

MiniMax announced H3 on July 31, 2026, and released a downloadable base model on August 3. H3 can use reference material to create video with stereo sound. The downloadable version includes only part of the hosted service: it leaves out the systems that process the full set of references and produce the final 2K version. Running it yourself therefore does not automatically give you the same workflow.³⁴

Give the model a visual brief

Imagine an agency planning a product clip. A written instruction such as “make it feel calm and premium” leaves much open to interpretation. A product photo, a reference for slow camera movement and a suitable sound example can make that brief more concrete.

The value of reference-based generation is that the creator can communicate several parts of the idea without describing each one from scratch. It also requires choices. Conflicting references can pull the result in different directions, so a small set of well-explained files may be more useful than filling every available slot.

What changed versus Hailuo 2

H3 can use text, pictures, video and audio to help guide a generated clip. The announced full workflow creates up to 15 seconds of video with stereo sound, meaning separate left and right audio channels, and supports a final 2K version.³

The release history includes Hailuo 2.3 and 2.3-Fast between Hailuo 02 and H3. Keep the actual version names when comparing services: an older product family name can hide several different releases.

The downloadable H3-Base creates 768p video. MiniMax’s full service has additional components that interpret the references and create the higher-resolution 2K result. Those components were not included in the base-model download.⁴

For a business, this is the difference between obtaining one part of a production system and using the complete hosted service. If a provider proposes running H3 on your own equipment, ask them to demonstrate the exact input and final output you will receive. A download alone does not establish that the full online workflow is available.

Benchmarks without mixing H3 and H3 Max

These scores come from people choosing between videos without seeing which model made them. Elo is a relative preference score, not a percentage of clips ready to use. The confidence intervals, shown as plus-or-minus ranges, overlap for H3 and Seedance 2.0, so this table does not establish a clear quality winner. Keep comparisons within the with-audio category; scores from silent-video tests answer a different question.¹

For your own comparison, pick a brief with a few visible requirements: a recognizable product, one clear movement and usable sound. Count the clips that meet all of them. A preference leaderboard can help identify tools to try, but this smaller exercise tells you more about the production work you actually need.

H3 Max is listed as a separate model with its own prices, and its supported inputs should be checked separately. The word “Max” does not establish that its output is better.²

Practical uses and input limits

A reference is material you supply to show what you want. A product photo might guide appearance, a video might guide movement and an audio clip might guide sound. Explain the purpose of each file so the request does not ask the model to infer which details matter.

Use reference material you have permission to supply and keep the request specific. If one file is only a camera-movement example, say so. Then check whether the generated clip follows the intended movement without copying unwanted details from that example.

Hosted access and pricing

The hosted service charges for the video it creates and, in some cases, the references it processes. A per-second output price therefore does not always tell you the complete request cost. More attempts and extra finishing will also affect a production budget.

Ask which of those line items applies to your planned request. A subscription allowance and these developer rates are separate arrangements; consumer entitlements and account quotas were not verified for the article.

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