Walt Disney Co. will invest $1 billion in OpenAI and license more than 200 of its iconic characters, including Mickey Mouse, Cinderella and Luke Skywalker, for use in the artificial intelligence (AI) company’s Sora video-generation tool, the companies announced Thursday.
The three-year agreement makes Disney the first major content partner for Sora, which can create short, realistic videos from text prompts.
Beginning in 2026, fans will be able to generate and share “fan-inspired” videos featuring characters from Disney, Pixar, Marvel and Star Wars. Disney will also integrate select user-generated clips into Disney+ and adopt OpenAI technology internally, including rolling out ChatGPT to employees.
The deal comes as Disney simultaneously challenged AI use by other tech giants. On Wednesday, the company sent Google a cease-and-desist letter accusing it of training AI models on Disney’s copyrighted characters “on a massive scale.”
Both Disney and OpenAI emphasized that the partnership is structured to protect creators. Disney said the agreement does not allow OpenAI to train its models on Disney’s intellectual property or use any actor likenesses or voices.
“This agreement shows how AI companies and creative leaders can work together responsibly,” said OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. Disney CEO Bob Iger said the collaboration will extend Disney storytelling “while respecting and protecting creators and their works.”
Still, the deal drew swift criticism from labor groups and children’s advocates. The Writers Guild of America said Disney’s partnership appears to “sanction” OpenAI’s “theft” of Hollywood writers’ work, arguing that AI companies have used copyrighted material to build their systems without permission. The union said it will meet with Disney to examine how user-generated videos may rely on writers’ contributions and vowed to continue pushing studios to defend their intellectual property.
SAG-AFTRA also issued a cautionary statement, saying it will closely monitor the arrangement to ensure performers’ image, voice and likeness rights are protected. The actors’ union said it has been in “frank discussions” with OpenAI for months about safeguards for performers.
Children’s advocacy group Fairplay condemned Disney’s decision, arguing that the partnership contradicts OpenAI’s own claims that Sora is not intended for use by minors.
The controversy reflects broader anxieties surrounding generative video tools like Sora, which have dazzled audiences but also sparked fears about deepfakes, misinformation and the displacement of human creativity.
Despite the criticism, Disney and OpenAI say they see the collaboration as a model for responsible innovation and a new way to bring Disney’s stories to global audiences.
