The Walt Disney Firm introduced on Thursday that it has signed a three-year partnership with OpenAI that can deliver its iconic characters to the corporate’s Sora AI video generator. Disney can be making a $1 billion fairness funding in OpenAI.
Disney CEO Bob Iger advised CNBC that the deal comes with a couple of yr of exclusivity. After the yr is up, Disney can license its IP to different AI firms.
Launched in September, Sora permits customers to create brief movies utilizing easy prompts. With this new settlement, customers will be capable of draw on greater than 200 animated, masked, and creature characters from Disney, Marvel, Pixar, and Star Wars, together with costumes, props, automobiles, and extra.
These characters embody iconic faces like Mickey Mouse, Ariel, Belle, Cinderella, Baymax, and Simba, in addition to characters from Encanto, Frozen, Inside Out, Moana, Monsters, Inc., Toy Story, Up, and Zootopia. Customers may also be capable of draw on animated or illustrated variations of Marvel and Lucasfilm characters like Black Panther, Captain America, Deadpool, Groot, Iron Man, Darth Vader, Han Solo, Stormtroopers, and extra.
Customers may also be capable of draw on these characters whereas utilizing ChatGPT Photos, the function in ChatGPT that enables customers to create visuals utilizing textual content prompts.
The settlement doesn’t embody any expertise likenesses or voices, Disney says.
“The speedy development of synthetic intelligence marks an essential second for our trade, and thru this collaboration with OpenAI we’ll thoughtfully and responsibly lengthen the attain of our storytelling by means of generative AI, whereas respecting and defending creators and their works,” mentioned Disney CEO Bob Iger in a press release.
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Disney says that alongside the settlement, it’s going to “grow to be a serious buyer of OpenAI,” as it’s going to use its APIs to construct new merchandise, instruments, and experiences, together with for Disney+.
“Disney is the worldwide gold customary for storytelling, and we’re excited to associate to permit Sora and ChatGPT Photos to develop the way in which folks create and expertise nice content material,” mentioned Sam Altman, co-founder and CEO of OpenAI, in a press release. “This settlement exhibits how AI firms and artistic leaders can work collectively responsibly to advertise innovation that advantages society, respect the significance of creativity, and assist works attain huge new audiences.”
It’s value noting that Disney has sued the generative AI platform Midjourney for ignoring requests to cease violating its mental property rights. Disney additionally despatched a cease-and-desist letter to Character.AI, urging the chatbot firm to take away Disney characters from among the many tens of millions of AI companions on its platform.
Disney’s settlement with OpenAI signifies the corporate isn’t absolutely closing the door on AI platforms.
