Disney has appointed its first ever chief technology officer

Disney has officially announced the creation of the position of Chief Technology Officer (CTO) and the appointment of the former head of Character.AI to this post. This decision marks a strategic shift of the corporation towards deep integration of machine learning technologies into its media assets.

The new CTO will head the division responsible for implementing generative models in content production and developing the company's interactive platforms. Previously, there were legal disputes between Disney and Character.AI: the media giant sent the startup an official cease-and-desist letter, accusing the platform of unauthorized use of intellectual property and copying characters.

The appointment takes place against the backdrop of a large-scale restructuring of Disney's technology department, which aims to reduce spending on external IT solutions. It is expected that under the leadership of the new director, the company will focus on creating its own proprietary models for automating animation and personalizing the user experience in theme parks.

The involvement of a specialist with experience in managing an AI startup indicates Disney's intention to move from a model of licensing third-party technologies to developing internal tools. This will allow the company to control the rights to generated images and reduce the risks associated with copyright, which previously became the reason for lawsuits.