Disney to Invest $1 Billion in OpenAI, License 200 Characters to Sora

The Walt Disney Company announces today a $1 billion equity investment in OpenAI alongside a three year licensing agreement that will allow OpenAI’s image and video tools to generate content featuring more than 200 characters from Disney, Pixar, Marvel and Lucasfilm. The deal covers characters, masks, creature designs and hundreds of animated props, and it makes Disney both an investor in and a major customer of the maker of ChatGPT and Sora, OpenAI’s social short form text to video generator.

Under the agreement, users of OpenAI’s Sora and ChatGPT Images will be able to create short user prompted still images and social video clips featuring approved characters and assets. Examples named in reporting include Mickey Mouse, Ariel and Cinderella, figures from Frozen and Moana, Yoda and Darth Vader, characters from Monsters, Inc. and Toy Story, Marvel heroes such as Black Panther, and licensed elements such as Stormtroopers and lightsabers. Companies said the licensed content will become available to Sora and ChatGPT Images users in 2026.

The investment includes warrants that give Disney the right to purchase additional OpenAI shares, though companies have not disclosed the precise valuation or what percentage of OpenAI the transaction represents. Reporting also says Disney will use OpenAI’s tools internally to streamline film production workflows and seek efficiencies in creative production, while retaining a role in curating and owning certain outcomes produced on the platform. Axios reported that Disney can select standout user generated videos for possible inclusion on Disney plus.

The agreement includes editorial guardrails intended to prevent characters from being depicted in inappropriate situations, and Disney retains control mechanisms over how its characters are presented. Details of those guardrails, and the precise technical and commercial terms governing monetization of user created content, were not disclosed in the initial reporting. The announcement was reported by Reuters, The Los Angeles Times, CNBC, Axios and Ars Technica.

Bob Iger, Disney’s chief executive, told CNBC that "the rapid advancement of artificial intelligence marks an important moment for our industry," and said Disney will "thoughtfully and responsibly extend the reach of our storytelling through generative AI, while respecting and protecting creators and their works."

The pact represents a stark turn from earlier tensions between Hollywood and AI developers, when studios expressed skepticism and pressed legal challenges over generative models trained on copyrighted material. Industry observers said Disney’s backing is likely to lend legitimacy to OpenAI within entertainment circles and could encourage other studios to pursue licensing partnerships rather than litigation.

OpenAI launched Sora in September 2025 and the platform drew criticism at launch from some corners of the entertainment business. Today's agreement marks the first major studio content licensing tie up tied to the Sora platform and will test how legacy creative controls and new generative tools can coexist in production and distribution pipelines.