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Disney Budgets $180M For Staff From Bankrupt Character.AI
Cartoon Brew • • business
Key Points:
- Disney plans to spend approximately $180 million over three years to retain 66 employees from the bankrupt chatbot startup Character.AI, following layoffs of technology workers in September.
- The hires are led by former Character.AI CEO Karandeep Anand, recently appointed as Disney’s first company-wide chief technology officer, with most of Character.AI’s 86-person workforce transitioning to Disney.
- Character.AI filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on October 12, shortly after Anand joined Disney, which also offered $20 million for certain intellectual property and company claims through the bankruptcy process.
- This investment occurs amid Disney’s ongoing restructuring efforts in 2026, including multiple rounds of job cuts, benefit restrictions, and plans to reduce the legal department through automation and outsourcing.
- Despite these cuts, Disney reported strong financial results with a 21% increase in fiscal third-quarter operating income and raised its share-buyback target to at least $9 billion for the fiscal year.
