Highlights
- OpenAI discontinues Sora less than two years after launch.
- Disney partnership terminated after three-year licensing deal announced.
- Firm redirects resources towards robotics and autonomous AI systems.
The company is simultaneously terminating its content partnership with entertainment giant Disney, according to BBC .
An OpenAI spokesperson confirmed on Wednesday that Sora's closure allows the firm to concentrate on other developments, particularly robotics "that will help people solve real-world, physical tasks".
Partnership ends abruptly
Disney responded diplomatically to the announcement, with a spokesperson stating: "We respect OpenAI's decision to exit the video generation business and to shift its priorities elsewhere."
The entertainment conglomerate indicated it would explore partnerships with alternative AI platforms while ensuring responsible technology use without intellectual property infringement.
OpenAI is shutting both Sora's consumer application and the professional internet-based platform for video generation.
The company will no longer develop video-generation tools, instead pursuing advanced AI forms including "agentic" technology capable of autonomously completing tasks with minimal human supervision.
The firm plans to apply technology previously used for teaching AI realistic video production to robot training. Image-making tools on ChatGPT remain unaffected by Sora's closure.
Last December, Disney became the first major studio licensing intellectual property to OpenAI for AI video tools.
The three-year agreement permitted Sora users to create AI videos featuring Disney characters including Mickey Mouse and Star Wars' Yoda.
Industry observers viewed the deal as a pivotal moment for technology and Hollywood relations, following major studios' legal challenges against AI firms over intellectual property usage.
Sora faced increasing competition in AI video-making markets, including China's Seedance, which generated controversy in February when realistic videos featuring Hollywood characters went viral online.
