XPLAI

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Twisted Scholar is a video production company that creates compelling informational content for healthcare and government agencies. I'm the president and executive producer.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire XPLAI?

We needed to create attractive, animated explainer videos that conveyed complex concepts through clear visuals.

What were your goals for this project?

We wanted to create stylish videos that met client demands while remaining within a tight budget.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

I found them on the internet, contacted them through email, and used a basic project to test their capabilities. They exceeded my expectations on each step of the project.

Describe the video(s) and the process in detail.

We send them scripts, conceptual outlines, and rough visual ideas. They typically respond with storyboards and sample illustrations that convey the message. Once we approve the illustrations, we give them a rough soundtrack with narration and they animate the video scene by scene.

Approving the video is an iterative process: they submit drafts to the client, we make changes, and they submit more drafts. After approving a final draft, they enhance the soundtrack and deliver a master track.

What was your vendors' project management or feedback process?

Their team stays in constant contact with our producers, ensuring that each project meets the client's expectations.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Our clients love their work, and their illustration and animation capabilities have improved significantly during our collaboration. They're a talented bunch, and we are lucky to offer their work to our clients.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

We've had difficulties with foreign contractors because of the language barrier. That isn't the case with XPLAI. We work on technically complex projects, but they always stay on task and understand our proposals.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

We liked the original work we received from XPLAI. Even though we never asked for improvements, they made internal changes to improve their illustration and animation capabilities. Now their work is even better.

Are there any areas for improvement?

I have no suggestions.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I’m the lead industrial designer for a company that specializes in designing and developing advanced musical products. Our goal is to turn music playing into the most intuitive and exciting experience. In my role, I’m in charge of product design and commercial promotion support.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire XPLAI?

We approached XPLAI to make an explainer animation of our new product. The video needed to help our audiences better understand the product's features, functions, and playing method. We also required XPLAI’s team to know basic music theory in order to implement the most appropriate visual effects when demonstrating the product.

What were your goals for this project?

We wanted the demo to thrill audiences and pique their passion for playing music through an easily understandable visual model.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We looked up options on a crowdsourcing platform, researching vendor samples and identifying cases that resonated with our culture. XPLAI’s case demonstration was outstanding, and they provided us with a quick mockup to review after our initial contact. Their quote also matched our budget.

Describe the video(s) and the process in detail.

In the first meeting, we provided XPLAI with a detailed set of video requirements, stipulating that they give weekly updates on their process. We wanted to review their outcomes to ensure that the final version would fulfill our expectations. They delivered an animation featuring 3D models and music.

What was your vendors' project management or feedback process?

They assigned product management staff who were responsible for connecting us to their team. During one stage, we asked their team to sync our soundtrack with their visuals, which required a large amount of work. However, their management was responsive to all of our feedback throughout the project and fixed any problems that arose.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

They’ve only recently finished the video, so we don’t have any hard metrics. However, the video is part of an ongoing marketing process. We intend to present the video to potential investors and test users to collect feedback for future product development.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

They promptly delivered outcomes on a weekly basis and refined issues based on our review. Their product management played a crucial role in coordinating our questions and requirements with the production team.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

They’re a first-rate agency that works efficiently. The team is good at exploring unfamiliar fields and integrating new knowledge into their skill sets. Though our requirements called for a specific background in music and tech, they delivered as promised, and we were completely satisfied with XPLAI’s work.

Are there any areas for improvement?

Because the team is young and continuing to grow, they’ll inevitably encounter industries and methods that they’re unfamiliar with. As a result, it can take a bit of time in the beginning before they can start to produce work efficiently. It would benefit them if management scheduled a more realizable time frame for each stage.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the founder of a mobile application.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with XPLAI?

We wanted to create a promo video.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Initially, they created a mood board with ideas for presenting the application. After a lot of modifications, they showed me a couple of different versions. We ended up with an excellent 25-second video. The music they chose was also interesting.

What is the team composition?

Julia (Account Manager, XPLAI) was our main contact. She was excellent. I also spoke with one of the managers at the start of the project.

How did you come to work with XPLAI?

I searched for video production companies online. I liked XPLAI’s animation and their style. Since they were also helpful and responsive, I decided to hire them for this project.

How much have you invested in them?

We spent around $2,500 on the video.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in May 2018, and it is an ongoing relationship. The video is complete, but we are planning to assign another project to them.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

People have noticed the high quality of our video. It also has a better conversion rate than our previous promotions.

How did XPLAI perform from a project management standpoint?

Julia took care of everything. She was in touch with me the entire time and clearly explained every step of the process. Their team sought my approval before making any modifications and accepted all of my feedback. Other companies would only allow you a certain number of modifications, but XPLAI was flexible. Despite some delays on my end, they took care of whatever I needed.

What did you find most impressive about them?

XPLAI stands out because of the team’s professionalism and knowledge. They made sure that I was happy, which is why I love working with this company. They love what they do, and they are good at it.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Make sure that you explain everything you have in mind.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I’m the founder and director of a company that focuses on creating top-tier digital products, services, and online marketing campaigns for a range of select clients. I’m involved in everything that goes in and out of the business, and I work collaboratively with our internal and remote design and development teams.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire XPLAI?

XPLAI has been involved in numerous projects that required animation and video content. Their work included social animations, promotional videos, and icon and illustration design.

What were your goals for this project?

Through these projects, we wanted to create a series of high-quality digital assets for our clients. The quality and speed of the production were paramount to meeting our expectations.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

I had collaborated with one of the designers at XPLAI before the company formed. Their skill motivated me to continue the relationship. As their business has grown, our collaboration has increased, and they are now able to expand into different areas of design production.

Describe the video(s) and the process in detail.

We provide detailed briefs for XPLAI that match our project expectations, and they work with us to achieve our vision creatively. The process is quite collaborative: they send updates throughout the production cycle, and we provide remote art direction to achieve the correct result.

What was your vendor’s project management or feedback process?

We discuss and collaborate with XPLAI primarily via Slack and occasionally via email. This allows us to stay in constant communication; we treat them like they’re a part of our in-house team. We share and create storyboards and prepare test animations and illustrations before finalizing the project results.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

The projects we have completed with XPLAI have led to further work, as they’ve had a positive impact on our client relationships.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

The workflow is constant, iterative, and collaborative. We help guide them creatively to meet our needs and vision through constant art direction and feedback.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

XPLAI goes above and beyond to deliver outstanding work. They help us deliver projects and solutions that meet our client's needs, and we guide each other through our own areas of expertise.

Are there any areas for improvement?

We work with XPLAI to ensure the results match our expectations. For this reason, we haven’t found any significant areas of their business model that need improvement. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I work at a digital marketing firm.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with XPLAI?

We needed a company to help us create scrolling infographics for one of our projects.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Our recent project was to design scrolling infographics, which incorporated brand identity and illustrations. They've done about 10 projects for our organization. Usually, we give them a creative brief and they go from there. They've also done videos for us. 

What is the team composition? 

We work with 2–3 people in total, including our project manager.

How did you come to work with them?

One of our owners found them.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent about $7,000 on my projects, and about twice as much on other projects they had done for our company. 

What is the status of this engagement? 

We started working with them in March 2017 and the relationship is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

We're very happy with the quality they produce, which is why we continue working with them. Our clients love the products we deliver to them.

How did they perform from a project management standpoint?

They've met all of their deadlines (when there was a missed deadline, it wasn't their fault). They're also phenomenal communicators. We've worked with a lot of companies that are located outside of U.S. and we often struggled with back-and-forth communication, but we didn't have any problems at all with XPLAI. They're extremely responsive. If we need to do any edits, they deal with them immediately, usually resolving any issues within 24 hours. We've used Slack, Asana, and Harvest for project management.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They're able to get everything right from the first try and they're always there for us.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, not at this time.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Have an updated creative brief and have all the information in one spot for them. They'll take it and go from there.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the marketing manager of Sahara Net, an information and communications technology provider in Saudi Arabia. We provide anything that has to do with internet connectivity and data-only connectivity, as well as MPLS [multi-protocol label switching] and VPN [virtual private network] encryption methods. We also have hosting (e.g., co-location hosting and dedication hosting) and cloud services and solutions (e.g., VPS and ERP [enterprise resource planning]). We also offer cloud storage and security.

We’re a Golden Partner of Microsoft in Saudi Arabia, so we sell Microsoft licenses (e.g., Microsoft Office 365). We’re soon going to be able to provide Azure Stack services within Saudi Arabia as well.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with XPLAI?

We launched an e-commerce website to sell our cloud services and solutions, but needed to create an explanatory and motion graphic video to highlight our offerings in an attractive way.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They created the concept, developed the script, and came up with a storyboard. They showed me mockups of what the video was going to look like. They also gave me some voice-over samples to choose from and showed me the background music. They professionally produced an English and Arabic version of the motion graphic video.

They also worked on other tools and smaller projects with me. They created a perfect stadium dynamic banner which lasts for 10 seconds. They also did another short video containing a few images that lasted 50 seconds.

What is the team composition?

There was an account manager and 1–3 other people who were working with her.

How did you come to work with XPLAI?

I looked on Upwork for a freelancer or agency who could produce our video. I contacted a few, but wasn’t satisfied until I met and talked with XPLAI. We came up with a price and agreed to work together.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent around $1,500 for both videos. They gave me a very attractive price.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from June 2017–October 2017.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

I ran an online campaign for this video that received a good number of views. The English version on YouTube had almost 10,000 views, while the Arabic version had about 3,000. I ran a campaign on Facebook as well, but I’m unsure how many views we got there. People from inside and outside the company I work with have provided feedback stating that they loved the end product. They said it was professionally done.

How did XPLAI perform from a project management standpoint?

They were excellent. The account manager was very cooperative, supportive, and understanding. Whenever I had something to talk about, she would come and speak with me in a nice and professional manner. She was always available. We communicated via Skype quite often. She is a great asset of XPLAI.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They communicated well and their client servicing was amazing. They provided great follow-up and quality of work. If I asked for things I knew would take time, they did it instantly and provided me with changes. They paid attention to detail and had great design skills. Everything was awesome. I rarely find people with this level of professionalism, quality, cooperation, and communication. I’m a straightforward person, and I mean it when I say that there are very few agencies I’ve dealt with who could provide such amazing work. It was great working with them.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I wish they could speak Arabic so that I could do more work with them in my language. They were surprisingly good at it, though. I have no suggestions for improvement, to be honest.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the owner of a video production company that specializes in live action and animation.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire XPLAI to accomplish for your motion pictures and film projects?

We needed help with animation production in a professional workflow suited for varied production sizes.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

XPLAI delivered the whole workflow for our animation projects, from the storyboard to the final animated project with sound design. The team created the storyboard, illustrations, animation, and sound design.

What is the team composition?

We worked with 2–5 teammates from XPLAI.

How did you come to work with XPLAI?

We found XPLAI through an online search. We chose them over other companies because they had high ratings, their pricing fit our budget, they offered good value for the cost, and they delivered high-quality results.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent less than $10,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from January–February 2025.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

The results met my directions, and when they weren't aligned, XPLAI quickly worked around my feedback to align it with the client's expectations for the project.

How did XPLAI perform from a project management standpoint?

We communicated via email and messaging apps. XPLAI delivered on time. It was a tight deadline project, but they made it work.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I was impressed by their reliability in getting a solid result for each project within the stipulated timeline.

Are there any areas they could improve?

There's nothing XPLAI could have done better or differently.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I work in communications at a blockchain company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire XPLAI, and what were your goals?

We hired XPLAI to create a video which would describe our company in an explainer fashion, along with our portfolio projects. Aim was to have something that is easily understood and can be used for trade shows and clients.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor and what were the deciding factors?

Did a search online and found that XPLAI had good experience working in 2D animation. They had worked with reputable brands and their work was of high quailty.

Describe the video(s) and the process in detail, including the project steps and all stages of production.

Started with a meeting outlining our vision to see if they could work with it. Then we sent over some materials for them to work with and there was a fast collaborative process during which XPLAI held steady communication and sent updates of drafts. Delivered a good quality video despite our short deadline.

Who did you work with and what was the feedback process like?

Mainly with Julia who liaisoned with her team. Their feedback process was fast and detailed.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

The video was appreciated internally and displayed at trade shows.

Describe their project management style, including communication tools and timeliness.

Solid timeliness, worked on short deadlines, and very easy to reach and discuss questions with - over Zoom, email and via comments on a joint shared document.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

No fluff — straight to the point, and very easy to work with.

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

I wish they would have had a longer lead time from us, but we were very happy with the outcome.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the director of a marketing agency.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire XPLAI, and what were your goals?

We hired XPLAI to create an animated explainer video for a new cryptocurrency project.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor and what were the deciding factors?

We decided to hire XPLAI because of the quality of their work and their affordable pricing.

Describe the video(s) and the process in detail, including the project steps and all stages of production.

We provided XPLAI with a script and they began by creating a mood board with various different choices for styling. We quickly decided upon styling, and they proceeded to create a storyboard. Upon approval they began working on the first version of the video as well as the voiceover for the script. In the end, the delivered a very high quality explainer video with custom animations that exceeded our expectations.

Who did you work with and what was the feedback process like?

I worked with a project manager who was very attentive. All of my questions and concerns were answered in a very timely manner.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

We have not yet used the video for marketing purposes.

Describe their project management style, including communication tools and timeliness.

I mainly communicated with XPLAI via Upwork.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

Their attention to detail and the quality of their work were impressive.

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

The whole process was wonderful. I couldn't be happier with the results.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

We are a Modern Real Estate Agency using technological tools to make the process more efficient.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire XPLAI / XPLAI GAMES?

We needed an animation explainer video to showcase our product for homeowners.

What were your goals for this project?

To create an animation explainer video

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We saw their work on sites such as behance and we found that their work looked professional and they had reasonable pricing.

Describe the video(s) and the process in detail.

1. Provided script 2. Approve storyboard 3. Approve Illustrations 4. Approve Animation 5. Approve and Select Voiceover 6. Sound FX 7. Project delivery

What was your vendors' project management or feedback process?

Good

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

We are happy with the results and will probably work again with this company again

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

It was good. I communicated with one person throughout the whole process.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Their fast turn around time was most impressive.

Are there any areas for improvement?

no