Sam Altman says copyright owners are asking OpenAI to feature their characters in Sora

Sora’s viral launch sparks both excitement and backlash

OpenAI’s new video generation app, Sora, launched to instant viral success and controversy. The platform allows users to create short AI-generated videos by typing text prompts.

However, soon after launch, reporters and users highlighted Sora-generated videos featuring well-known copyrighted characters, prompting debates over infringement and controls.

Critics warned that this could unleash a wave of copyright lawsuits, while fans hailed it as a glimpse into the future of creative entertainment powered by AI.

Sam Altman says copyright holders want in, not out

In a surprising twist, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman revealed that many copyright holders aren’t angry; they’re intrigued.

Speaking on the a16z podcast, Altman said studios and creators have reached out asking to have their characters featured more often, not less.

Some are worried we won’t use their characters enough,” he said, noting that many see Sora as a way to deepen fan engagement and bring old franchises to life in new, interactive ways.

Altman calls it the dawn of interactive fan fiction

Altman described Sora as ushering in a new form of storytelling, which he calls “interactive fan fiction.” Instead of studios losing control over their creations, he believes they can guide how fans remix and reimagine beloved worlds.

OpenAI plans to give rights holders more power to decide how their characters appear, from limiting offensive content to defining creative boundaries. Altman predicts that eventually, studios will compete to have their IP featured most frequently.

Sora’s realism alters how people respond to AI generated content

According to Altman, rights holders are responding differently to video than they did to AI images. “Video feels much more real and lifelike,” he explained.

“It hits people emotionally in a way that still images don’t.” That realism makes companies more protective of their characters but also more interested in controlling how they appear in Sora.

The emotional impact of seeing familiar faces in motion is prompting both creators and regulators to reassess what constitutes ownership in the era of AI.

Hollywood pushes back against AI copyright chaos

Not everyone is cheering. The Motion Picture Association (MPA), representing Disney, Universal, and Warner Bros., sent OpenAI a stern letter demanding it stop relying on its current “opt-out” copyright policy.

Studios argue that OpenAI must prevent infringement upfront, rather than waiting for takedown requests, as a proactive legal obligation today.

OpenAI plans to shift from an opt-out to an opt-in approach for IP owners

In response to industry pressure, Altman announced OpenAI will move toward an “opt-in” model for copyrighted material.

This would enable studios to register their characters with OpenAI officially and specify exactly how they can be utilized on Sora.

The system aims to ensure that only approved franchises appear in AI videos, while also offering creators the option to license their characters for new kinds of fan-generated content legally and safely.

Revenue sharing could turn conflict into collaboration

OpenAI is also developing a revenue-sharing system for copyright holders whose characters are used in Sora videos.

Altman says the company wants to compensate IP owners directly, transforming what could have been a legal battle into a new digital economy.

The idea is that when users create content featuring licensed characters, the rights holders would earn a portion of the platform’s revenue, a model inspired by streaming royalties, but designed for AI-generated creativity.

Cameos by OpenAI: studio IP in AI video

OpenAI confirmed it’s building a feature called “Cameos,” which allows users to insert official, licensed characters into AI-generated videos.

The feature will give rights holders complete control over how their creations appear, from their look to what they can say.

OpenAI has teased an official licensed-characters feature (often described as ‘cameos’) but has not provided a precise public launch date. These cameos could mark the beginning of sanctioned, studio-backed AI storytelling on a large scale.

The darker side of Sora’s early viral fame

While excitement builds, Sora’s debut also showed the potential for misuse. Within days, users created disturbing or offensive videos using copyrighted and real-world figures.

Some clips depicted violence, false news footage, or characters in inappropriate scenarios. OpenAI scrambled to deploy stricter guardrails after backlash on social media.

Altman admitted the company didn’t fully anticipate how quickly people would push the limits of what AI-generated video could do.

OpenAI faces the same legal storm as its competitors

OpenAI isn’t the first AI company caught in the crossfire of copyright law. Disney and Universal are already suing image generator Midjourney for unauthorized use of their characters.

Meanwhile, Character.AI recently pulled all Disney-inspired chatbots after receiving a cease-and-desist letter.

Experts say Sora could face similar challenges if it doesn’t address potential violations promptly. Stanford professor Mark Lemley warned that “OpenAI is opening itself up to a lot of lawsuits.”

Altman insists transparency will guide future updates

Altman said OpenAI will act quickly when mistakes happen. “We’ll make some good decisions and some missteps, but we’ll fix them fast,” he wrote in a company blog post.

Future updates will include granular controls for rightsholders and improved moderation tools for users.

The goal, Altman said, is to build trust through transparency, showing that OpenAI can both innovate and protect creators’ rights in the process.

Sora’s popularity highlights the rapid growth of AI entertainment

In less than a week, Sora became the most downloaded app on Apple’s App Store, even though it’s invite-only. Usage surged across iOS and Android during rollout, with app-store metrics cited. ranging from surreal mashups to short films.

The platform’s rapid adoption underscores how eager people are to experiment with AI creativity. For OpenAI, the challenge now is balancing innovation with responsibility and ensuring Sora evolves without becoming another legal minefield for the company.

Sora could change how fans interact with pop culture

For decades, fans have created fan art, remixes, and memes. Sora turns that tradition into a living medium. Instead of just watching or drawing characters, fans can now direct them in personalized mini-stories.

Altman believes this “participatory entertainment” will reshape the creative industry, blending professional production with user imagination.

Whether studios embrace or resist it could determine how fast AI-generated media becomes mainstream.

Altman sees collaboration as the future of storytelling

Altman envisions a world where AI doesn’t replace creators but empowers them. He predicts that within a year, studios will be lobbying OpenAI to include their IP more frequently, not less.

“People will say OpenAI isn’t being fair for not putting my content in enough videos,” he joked. The statement reflects his confidence that Sora can transform from a legal headache into a collaborative, creative marketplace, where fans and studios share the same digital stage.

Sora isn’t the only tool changing how creators work. See what Microsoft just unleashed in Microsoft’s new AI video tool is free and shockingly easy to master.

Altman says Sora is giving society a taste of the future

Despite the chaos, Altman remains optimistic. He told podcast hosts that Sora’s launch is an experiment, a preview of what happens when anyone can create lifelike videos with a few words.

“It’s important to give society a taste of what’s coming,” he said. From interactive storytelling to personalized animation, Sora may be the first step toward a world where everyone becomes a filmmaker and where creativity, law, and technology must learn to evolve together.

Sora’s debut is impressive, but the real test is still ahead. See how it stacks up in Sora Must Step Up to Compete With Runway AI Model.

What do you think about Sam Altman’s statement about other copyright holders asking to add their characters to Sora? Please share your thoughts and drop a comment.

Read More From This Brand:

• Sora video generator coming to ChatGPT
• Meet Sora, OpenAI’s visionary video model
• Gemini Live upgrade gives your AI a sharper vision in real time

Don’t forget to follow us for more exclusive content on MSN.

If you liked this story, you’ll LOVE our FREE emails. Join today and be the first to get stories like this one.

This slideshow was made with AI assistance and human editing.