AIster · The agentic age · M&A & deals
Disney licenses characters to Sora, plans $1 billion stake
The first major studio licence for AI video, cut short by Sora's shutdown
Key facts
- Date
- 11 Dec 2025
- Era
- The agentic age
- Interest
- M&A & deals
- Threads
- Model wars
- Licence
- Three years, more than 200 characters
- Investment
- $1 billion in equity, plus warrants for more
- Excluded
- Talent likenesses and voices
- Outcome
- Sora shutdown announced 24 Mar 2026; Disney dropped the investment
Disney and OpenAI signed a three-year licence letting Sora users make videos with more than 200 Disney, Marvel, Pixar and Star Wars characters, excluding talent likenesses and voices. Disney said it would invest $1 billion in OpenAI equity. In March 2026 OpenAI announced it was shutting down Sora, and Disney said it would no longer go ahead with the investment.
Sources
- The Walt Disney Company, The Walt Disney Company and OpenAI Reach Landmark Agreement to Bring Beloved Characters from Across Disney’s Brands to Sora, 2025-12-11
- The Hollywood Reporter, Disney Exits OpenAI Deal After AI Giant Shutters Sora, 2026-03-24