OpenAI pulls AI video app that sparked deepfake fears
OpenAI is shutting down Sora, the social media app that went viral as a place to share short-form videos created by artificial intelligence but also raised alarms in Hollywood and elsewhere.
OpenAI said in a brief social media message on Tuesday that it was “saying goodbye to the Sora app” and would soon share more information on how to protect what users have already created.
“What you did with Sora was important, and we know this news is disappointing,” he said.
The company behind ChatGPT launched Sora in September to garner attention and potentially ad dollars following short-form videos on TikTok, YouTube, or Meta-owned Instagram and Facebook.
But a growing chorus of advocacy groups, academics and experts have voiced concerns about the dangers of allowing people to create AI videos on just about anything they can type in a prompt; This has led to a proliferation of non-consensual images and realistic deepfakes in a sea of less harmful “AI bias”.
OpenAI has had to do strange things with AI creations of public figures including Michael Jackson, Martin Luther King Jr and Mister Rogers, but only after opposition from family estates and the actors’ union.
Disney, which struck a deal with OpenAI in 2025 to bring its characters to Sora, said in a statement on Tuesday that it respected “OpenAI’s decision to exit the video production business and shift its priorities elsewhere.”
“We appreciate the constructive collaboration between our teams and what we learned from it, and we will continue to engage with AI platforms to find new ways to meet fans where they are, while responsibly embracing new technologies that respect intellectual property and creators’ rights,” Disney said in a statement.
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