Disney's $1B OpenAI Deal: Iconic Characters for AI Video

• Walt Disney is investing $1 billion in OpenAI and will license characters from Star Wars, Pixar, and Marvel for Sora AI video generator and ChatGPT Images.
• The three-year partnership aims to reshape Hollywood content creation, allowing Sora and ChatGPT Images to generate videos with licensed Disney characters, excluding talent likenesses or voices.
• Disney will use OpenAI's tools for internal film production efficiency and to build new products for Disney+ subscribers, potentially allowing user-generated content to stream on the platform.
• Hollywood unions expressed concerns over the deal's impact on creative jobs and intellectual property, with the WGA calling it "theft of our work," despite assurances from Disney and OpenAI.

Why It Matters: Disney's OpenAI deal signals Hollywood's embrace of AI for content, despite union concerns.