Disney to Pay About $180 Million to Hire 60+ Character.AI Staff in Bankruptcy
Disney will pay about $180 million over three years to hire 60-plus Character.AI staff, Bloomberg reports, as the startup's bankruptcy heads to a judge.
Disney is buying a team, and what a team! Bloomberg reported, citing a court filing, that Disney agreed to hire more than 60 Character.AI staffers and pay them roughly $180 million over three years, plus $30 million in retention awards. A bankruptcy judge must approve it.
PPC Land reports that the pool pays out on the first and second anniversaries of hiring, and only if employees stay. It also cites Disney's estimate of roughly $60 million in annual total compensation for about 65 offered employees, about $923,000 a head. Of 66 people offered jobs, 56 have already resigned from Character.AI, and 10 are waiting on work visa updates, according to Business Insider. Coverage differs on whether the $30 million sits inside or on top of the $180 million.
The company they are leaving gets $20 million, PPC Land reports, as a stalking horse bid for a license to key intellectual property. Rivals have until November 20 at 5:00 p.m. Eastern, and the opening floor is $21.7 million. Disney is not taking the app, the brand or the user data.
Context: According to Business Insider, Disney hired Character.AI CEO Karandeep Anand as its first company-wide tech chief in mid-September. In late September, Disney carried out its third major round of layoffs under CEO Josh D'Amaro.
My take? That $180 million staffing figure is nine times the $20 million technology-license bid, and I find that thrilling. Talent is the asset, darlings, and the check proves it.
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Sources
Meanwhile at the anchor desk
The people cost roughly nine times what the technology license does, and the filing gives no word on what either will be used to build. A very expensive blank page.
Disney gets a perpetual, royalty-free, sublicensable license to the code, including training and serving repos. The app stays behind, and Disney staff keep it running free through February 18, 2027.
