Disney to hire majority of Character.AI staff following startup bankruptcy

After chatbot startup Character.AI filed for bankruptcy earlier this week, many of its employees will have the opportunity to take jobs at Disney. Character.AI’s former CEO Karandeep Anand recently became the entertainment giant’s first CTO, and the startup previously said that Disney had agreed to acquire some of its assets for $20 million. A legal filing spotted by Bloomberg revealed more details about the agreement between Character.AI and Disney, with Disney agreeing to make employment offers to at least 60 Character.AI employees — the majority of the workforce — paying them an estimated $60 million in annual compensation. The filing also says that the “vast majority” of Character.AI employees who were offered jobs at Disney accepted them. However, this is a stalking horse bid, so another company could come forward with a higher offer. The filing says that despite its “large and engaged user base,” Character.AI has been hobbled by high costs and “potential litigation-related liabilities and regulatory engagement.” (The company was sued by the mother of a 14-year-old boy who said her son became obsessed with one of Character.AI’s chatbots before committing suicide; it also faces government investigations over child safety concerns.)