Disney to invest USD1b in OpenAI, license 200+ characters for Sora AI use
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The news: Disney is investing USD1 billion ($1.5 billion) in OpenAI and will license more than 200 characters from its Disney, Marvel, Pixar and Star Wars franchises to OpenAI’s short-form video platform Sora, in a three-year deal that allows fans to create AI-generated social videos and images.
Sora and ChatGPT will begin generating user-prompted content using licensed characters in early 2026. Some user-created videos will be available to stream on Disney+.
The companies said the licensing deal does not include talent likenesses or voices.
Disney will also become a significant customer of OpenAI, using its models to build new tools, products and experiences, and deploying ChatGPT across its workforce.
The company will receive warrants to buy additional OpenAI equity.
The context: The agreement is a major move by a major Hollywood studio towards generative AI, signalling growing openness within the industry, even as tensions over AI’s impact on creators remain unresolved.
Creative Artists Agency, which represents thousands of actors, directors and musicians, in October criticised OpenAI’s Sora platform, warning it exposed artists to “significant risk”. The agency also questioned whether OpenAI believed creative professionals “deserve to be compensated and credited for the work they create”. Despite those concerns, OpenAI has continued talks with major studios including Universal Pictures and Warner Bros Discovery.
What they said: CEO Bob Iger said the collaboration would “thoughtfully and responsibly” expand the reach of Disney’s storytelling through generative AI.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman called Disney “the global gold standard for storytelling” and said the partnership showed how creative leaders and AI companies can work together to promote innovation.
