Disney bets on Adobe's Firefly to create brand-safe AI models for its entertainment empire
At Adobe's MAX conference, Disney and Adobe announced a multi-year partnership to develop custom artificial intelligence tools for the entertainment company's productions. Under the agreement, Adobe will use its Firefly Foundry to build custom models trained on Disney characters, environments, and visual styles. The goal is to produce commercially safe, production-ready creative assets while giving Disney early access to new Adobe technology across its theme parks, cruise lines, and ESPN platforms.
The initiative expands upon work by Disney's Imagineering research division, which already utilizes Firefly for theme park development, and broadens internal workflows across Walt Disney Studios. The partnership also involves Walt Disney Studios' StudioLAB and ESPN's innovation hub, ESPN Edge, which intend to leverage these AI models to increase fan engagement around sports coverage and discover new applications for ESPN's media archives.
The agreement follows an earlier deal with OpenAI that Disney ultimately walked away from, as well as Disney's involvement in the bankruptcy of Character.AI. The technological adoption comes amid significant internal restructuring: according to Bloomberg, Disney is preparing to eliminate thousands of jobs and reduce costs by 20 percent annually, marking the company's fourth round of layoffs this year.
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