Disney agrees to hire most of Character.AI's staff
The deal came as Character.AI filed for bankruptcy, and the startup keeps its legal claims.
Money#03
$60M
estimated annual pay for staff hired by Disney
Image: TechCrunch
$60Mestimated annual pay for staff hired by Disney
The short version
- Disney agreed to make job offers to at least 60 Character.AI employees, the majority of the workforce, according to a legal filing.
- The filing estimates the pay for those roles at $60 million in annual compensation.
- In September, Disney paid the startup $5.5 million, plus a refundable $2 million good faith deposit.
- Character.AI filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy on October 12, and Disney would pay an additional $12.5 million if it wins the auction for the license.
Why it matters
The deal shows how a buyer can take a startup's staff and technology while leaving its lawsuits behind. Ars Technica describes it as a possible reverse acquihire, a structure that has drawn the ire of Congress. For developers, the license under discussion covers trust and safety tools, training infrastructure and age-prediction technology.
“There’s decades of corporate law that developed to deal with the problem of a buyer who always wants to take on all the assets and never wants to take on any of the liability”