After just two years, OpenAI is shutting down Sora, its video generation app, following both praise and legal controversy. It’s been an interesting experiment whereby users could input lines of text and see their ideas brought to life in the form of a video trailer-styled format. On one hand, Sora provided users the freedom and means to use their imagination and produce content quickly, while on the other hand, it created a legal nightmare with intellectual property being used without permission, or more importantly, royalties being paid to rights owners.
Back in October, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman attempted a lighthearted defense of users’ use of copyrighted characters, calling it “Interactive Fan Fiction”.At the time, per IGN, Sora 2 had launched and promised more “granular” controls for rights owners, but that didn’t prevent Nintendo, Disney, and others from exploring their legal options against the AI image creator. Meanwhile, users were having their fun in making trailers featuring some of their favorite characters.
My favorite new trend in the Sora app is putting Pikachu in every movie.
— Justine Moore (@venturetwins) October 1, 2025
This is “Saving Private Pikachu” 👇 pic.twitter.com/pV8JYUb9SZ
Ironically, Disney would turn around and announce a $1 billion investment into OpenAI’s project, but would change its mind again after OpenAI decided Sora’s end had come. Per The Hollywood Reporter, “As the nascent AI field advances rapidly, we respect OpenAI’s decision to exit the video generation business and to shift its priorities elsewhere,” a Disney spokesperson said.
“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 IP and the rights of creators.”
-Disney
This is unlikely to be the end of OpenAI’s involvement with video generation AI models. It could be weeks, months, or maybe a year or so, but it wouldn’t be a surprise to see a Sora replacement revealed in the not-too-far-off future. Meanwhile, there are many sites and videos online instructing folks how to create Disney-style content using Grok AI.
On another front, Google recently revealed its latest generational AI model, Project Genie, which allows users to create worlds to explore, much like exploring an open-world game. OpenAI may choose to pursue a similar path for its next venture.