Disney turns to dark side, licenses IP to OpenAI for videos, images

Amid controversy over its ability to generate content with copyrighted characters, OpenAI has struck a three-year deal with Disney to license more than 200 Disney, Pixar, Marvel, and Star Wars characters for use in Sora videos and ChatGPT Images. Disney and OpenAI revealed the pact in a Thursday press release, framing it as a way for Sora and ChatGPT Images to generate licensed clips and artwork featuring a curated set of characters. The deal will even push Disney AI creations on Disney+ subscribers, the pair said, as the deal is making "a selection of these fan-inspired Sora short form videos available to stream." No word on how those videos will be picked, and Disney didn't respond to questions for this story. For actors worried that their likenesses are being licensed for AI generation without proper recompense, there's no need to be concerned here: Disney and OpenAI said that neither likenesses nor voices were included in the deal, so live-action characters from the Marvel universe and Star Wars franchise will only appear in "iconic animated or illustrated versions." Disney has also agreed to make a $1 billion equity investment in OpenAI as part of the deal and become "a major customer of OpenAI" through the use of its products "to build new products, tools, and experiences, including for Disney+ and deploying ChatGPT for its employees." In short, Disney is getting ahead of the curve and just jumping full-force into adopting AI. "The rapid advancement of artificial intelligence marks an important moment for our industry, and through this collaboration with OpenAI we will thoughtfully and responsibly extend the reach of our storytelling through generative AI, while respecting and protecting creators and their works," Disney CEO Bob Iger said of the deal. Iger also noted that "technological innovation has continually shaped the evolution of entertainment," and with the AI juggernaut sure seeming like an unstoppable one (barring a bursting bubble), it makes sense for one of the world's largest entertainment companies to adopt it. The move especially makes sense given the kerfuffle caused by OpenAI's Sora 2 video generation tool, which has drawn considerable heat from Hollywood and beyond for its ability to closely mimic the copyrighted intellectual property it was widely alleged to be trained on. OpenAI quickly caved to pressure from the entertainment industry after launching Sora 2 with the promise to adopt licensing deals like the one it signed with Disney, which at first reportedly asked OpenAI to get its IP out of the video generation machine's regurgitation algorithm. Sora makes slurfect deepfakes of celebs spewing racial epithets OpenAI to reveal secret training data in copyright case – for lawyers' eyes only Microsoft dials back Bing after users manage to recreate Disney logo in fake AI-generated images Author hopes to throw the book at OpenAI, Microsoft with copyright class action At the same time that Disney is partnering with OpenAI, it's also sending word to Google that if AI tools don't come from the house of Altman, they had better not be spitting out content derived from the House of Mouse. Disney reportedly sent a cease and desist letter to Google on Wednesday, alleging the company's AI systems were infringing on its intellectual property, calling the outputs a violation of its copyrights, and demanding that Google immediately stop generating content based on Disney-owned material. Famously litigious Disney has also reportedly sent similar letters to Character.ai and Meta over alleged misuse of its intellectual property. Google didn't respond to questions for this story. ®