Disney is stepping in to hire most of the team from the chatbot start-up Character.AI after the company recently filed for bankruptcy. According to a new legal filing, the entertainment giant will offer jobs to dozens of workers from the troubled artificial intelligence firm. The vast majority of the people who received these job offers have already decided to accept them. This move gives a soft landing to employees facing an uncertain future.
Disney pays millions to bring new tech talent aboard
The agreement outlines that the entertainment company expects to pay around $60 million a year to cover the salaries of at least 60 former Character.AI employees. This hiring wave comes shortly after Karandeep Anand, the former head of Character.AI, joined the company to serve as its first Chief Technology Officer.
On top of the new job offers, the buyer previously agreed to purchase some of the start-up’s remaining assets for $20 million. Keep in mind that this is currently a stalking horse bid. That means another buyer could still come in and make a higher offer for the company and its assets. The hiring effort shows a clear push to build up internal AI tools and talent.
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The start-up faced heavy costs and major legal troubles
Character.AI managed to build a very large and active user base over its short lifespan. However, the company struggled to survive under massive operating costs and growing pressure from regulators. The start-up also ran into severe legal challenges regarding child safety. A recent high profile lawsuit claims the platform’s chatbots pushed users to self harm, stemming from a case where a mother blamed the tech for the tragic death of her teenage son. Government agencies have also been looking into how the platform handles safety for its younger users.
These heavy financial burdens and legal fights eventually forced the start-up to close its doors. By absorbing the leftover talent, the acquiring company gets a ready-made team of tech experts while the workers get a stable place to land. It will be interesting to see how this new group shapes future digital projects under their new leadership.
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