Walt Disney (DIS) is investing $1 billion into OpenAI, granting the AI platform access to its characters for use in AI-generated videos. The partnership aims to enhance Disney’s digital offerings and expand its storytelling capabilities through generative AI. Financial terms of the arrangement are yet to be made public. Shares in Disney stock climbed an additional 1.4% on Thursday and are now up nearly 5% this week.
JUST IN: Disney $DIS to invest $1 billion into OpenAI. pic.twitter.com/iWqeXMcxjb
— Watcher.Guru (@WatcherGuru) December 11, 2025
Per a Thursday announcement, Disney’s three-year licensing deal will let users generate videos using Sora, OpenAI’s short-form AI video platform, of more than 200 Disney, Marvel, Star Wars, and Pixar characters. A curated selection of these short videos will be available to stream on Disney+. It’s the latest big investment the ChatGPT developer has received this year, benefiting heavily from the growing demand for AI technology. The partnership is exclusive for one year, after which Disney can make similar arrangements with other AI companies.
Furthermore, the deal will allow Disney to deploy ChatGPT to employees to use OpenAI tools to create new products and services. Disney CEO Bob Iger said on a call with Wall Street analysts to discuss earnings in November that, “there are phenomenal opportunities to deploy AI across our direct-to-consumer platforms, both to provide tools that make the platforms more dynamic and stick with consumers, but also to give consumers the opportunity to create on our platforms.”
A source close to the agreement also tells the Wall Street Journal that the characters Sora users will be able to access include Mickey Mouse, Elsa, and Darth Vader. However, none of those characters include the likenesses or voices of actors.
In addition to Disney’s latest investment, OpenAI is also still waiting on a $100B investment from Nvidia (NVDA). Nvidia’s Chief Financial Officer Colette Kress told the press on Tuesday that it is still finalizing its $100B deal. Should that deal go through, OpenAI’s valuation could surge even further.