OpenAI to boost content owners' control for Sora AI video app, plans monetization

By Mrinmay Dey

ChatGPT creator OpenAI will soon introduce controls allowing the owners of content rights to dictate how their characters are used in its AI video-generating tool Sora and plans to share revenue with those who permit such use.

The artificial intelligence company will give rights holders "more granular control over generation of characters," Chief Executive Sam Altman posted on his blog on Friday.

Altman said options for copyright owners, such as television and movie studios, will include being able to block the use of their characters.

Scrutiny is growing over AI-generated content and its impact on intellectual property rights, as companies navigate how to balance innovation with fair compensation for creators.

OpenAI launched Sora this week as a standalone app, initially available in the United States and Canada. Videos in the app can be up to 10 seconds long.

The app, which swiftly rose in popularity, lets users create and share AI videos that can be spun from copyrighted content and shared to social media-like streams.

Its copyright policy is expected to stir tensions in Hollywood. At least one major studio, Disney DIS, has opted out of having their material appear in the app, people familiar with the matter have told Reuters.

OpenAI also plans to introduce a revenue-sharing model for copyright holders who permit their characters to be generated by users, Altman wrote.

He said users are creating significantly more video content than expected, often for niche audiences, prompting the need for a monetization strategy.

Altman acknowledged that the revenue-sharing framework "will take some trial and error to figure out," but said implementation would begin soon as OpenAI intends to test various approaches within Sora, before rolling out a consistent model across its broader product suite.

Microsoft-backed MSFT OpenAI launched a Sora model for public use last year, expanding its foray into multimodal AI technologies and competing with similar text-to-video tools from Meta META and Alphabet's GOOG Google.

Meta recently unveiled Vibes, a platform where users can create and share short-form, AI-generated videos.