DISNEY INVESTS IN OPENAI AND LICENSES ITS CHARACTER PORTFOLIO
An alliance that not only sets a trend but also reveals where creative and technological power is heading.
In a move that blends corporate ambition, strategic calculation, and a renewed vision of the future of entertainment, The Walt Disney Company announced a 1-billion-dollar investment in OpenAI, accompanied by a licensing agreement that will allow more than 200 characters from Disney’s vast empire, including franchises such as Pixar, Marvel, and Star Wars, to be used in Sora, the company’s AI-driven video-generation platform.
The three-year agreement opens the door to a new digital creative aesthetic in which any user can generate short clips from simple text prompts. Beginning in early 2026, Sora and ChatGPT Images will be able to produce videos and images starring iconic figures such as Mickey and Minnie Mouse, Ariel, Belle, Cinderella, Mufasa, Stitch, or characters from Frozen, Toy Story, and Moana, as well as animated versions of Marvel heroes and Lucasfilm characters. The license, however, expressly excludes the likeness and voices of real actors.
For the industry, the announcement signals a quiet yet profound shift. Hollywood traditionally wary of the rise of generative AI, now finds itself confronted with an alliance that challenges its boundaries and reshapes its creative horizon. As Disney CEO Bob Iger noted, the advance of AI “marks an important moment for our industry,” and this collaboration aims to expand storytelling “responsibly and thoughtfully,” while continuing to “respect and protect creators and their works.”
The partnership follows months, if not years, of conversations between Iger and OpenAI co-founder and CEO Sam Altman. According to sources familiar with the process, Disney saw in Sora not just a new technology but a vehicle capable of expanding the interaction between its stories and a global audience. Part of the agreement even contemplates that a selection of user-generated videos may appear on Disney+, integrating directly into the company’s content ecosystem.
Disney, which will also become a major OpenAI client, plans to use the company’s tools to develop new creative and operational capabilities internally, including new experiences for Disney+ and the implementation of ChatGPT for its employees. OpenAI, for its part, stresses that this alliance shows how creative leaders can collaborate “to advance innovation that benefits society.”
The pact also establishes clear guardrails. OpenAI will allow Disney to set guidelines to prevent inappropriate uses of its characters, a particularly sensitive point at a time when studios face scrutiny over the impact of AI on intellectual property rights. It is no coincidence that, in parallel, Disney has sent cease-and-desist letters to Google, Meta, and other developers, denouncing large-scale infringements of its IP.
Even amid these tensions, including warnings from Hollywood agencies and unions, the alliance marks a decisive turning point. In an environment where creativity merges with automation, Disney is positioning itself to lead the conversation, doing so not only with capital but with the symbolic power of its own legacy.