According to a report cited by The Information on the 12th, OpenAI is negotiating with a hidden startup specializing in AI video technology for film production, aiming to transfer the previously suspended video generation model Sora and bring it back into play as a professional film tool. Shifting from consumer toys to industrial tools, OpenAI clearly wants to keep this technology thriving without spending money.
Cut down heavy assets to free up resources for business operations
This is not the first time that OpenAI has taken action regarding Sora. Earlier this year, in order to reduce high computing power consumption for non-core projects, the company halted the development of the Sora model and its TikTok-style video applications, redirecting resources toward enterprise AI and programming tools. Consumer applications and web platforms were also shut down, and a partnership with Disney worth approximately $1 billion (about 6.7 billion yuan) also came to an end. Given the high computing power costs and the emphasis on returns in capital investment, divesting heavy-asset consumer businesses has become OpenAI’s clear strategy.
Hollywood cast takes over, but the terms remain unresolved
The team that takes over is of considerable significance: the startup, founded a few months ago, was created by Hollywood producer Jeffrey Katzenberg, Bill Peebles, former Sora research head, and Suje Jaswa, former CFO of Dropbox. Its name has not yet been made public. According to the disclosed collaboration plan, they will take control of and transform the Sora platform, developing and selling software or services for film production companies around it. Embedding generation capabilities directly into the film production pipeline, rather than creating an app that everyone can use, is the direction this deal aims to verify; however, the terms between both parties are still far from finalized, and it remains unknown whether this company will be able to obtain the model weights of Sora.