OpenAI is shutting down its Sora video app, a move that disrupts a $1 billion deal with Disney.

OpenAI Shuts Down Sora Video Platform, Shifts Focus to Robotics

OpenAI is pulling the plug on its AI video generation platform, Sora. The company announced it will close both Sora and its related API, redirecting resources toward "world simulation research to advance robotics."

This move also puts the brakes on a previously announced $1 billion investment deal with Disney tied to Sora. The partnership, which would have seen around 250 Disney characters licensed for AI video generation, is no longer moving forward.

According to OpenAI, the decision comes as the company doubles down on its AGI roadmap and the compute power needed to support agentic AI capabilities. The consumer-facing app and API for Sora will be sunset, though the AI image generator built into ChatGPT isn't affected. A timeline for the shutdown and details on how users can save their work will be shared later.

Running Sora wasn't cheap—reportedly, it cost around $15 million a day to keep the lights on. OpenAI first rolled out the text-to-video model back in February 2024, later releasing a more advanced Sora 2 along with a standalone mobile app that featured social video streaming and a "cameo" function for users.

For its part, Disney said it respects OpenAI's decision to exit the video generation space and will keep exploring other ways to collaborate on generative AI.