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Disney offers $20M for Character.AI’s scandal-plagued chatbot tech

Disney has offered $20 million for a non-exclusive perpetual license to certain Character Technologies intellectual property in a bankruptcy proceeding, according to a Character.AI press release. The offer covers technology powering the controversial chatbot Character.AI, though the release did not specify which assets Disney wants. The move follows Disney’s September 2025 cease-and-desist letter accusing Character Technologies of misusing Disney characters and harming children.

AI Brief

It signals a major entertainment company’s potential interest in acquiring AI chatbot IP amid Character.AI’s bankruptcy and past legal criticism.

In a bankruptcy proceeding that kicked off yesterday, Disney has offered to buy some of the technology that powers the controversy-plagued chatbot Character.AI.

Disney is willing to pay $20 million for “a non-exclusive perpetual license” of certain Character Technologies intellectual property, the chatbot maker said in a press release that did not go into much further detail on which assets Disney wanted.

The move may be surprising. In September 2025, Disney joined others in publicly criticizing Character.AI for stealing content and harming kids. Specifically, Disney sent a strongly worded cease-and-desist letter that accused Character Technologies of weaponizing Disney characters “in a way that could damage its brand long term,” Axios reported.

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