Slate Business Slate Money | Disney Gets Ahead of the Darth Vader Porn
Dec 13, 2025
Disney's bold $1 billion investment in OpenAI comes with tricky licensing rules that could redefine character usage in AI. The hosts debate whether OpenAI can enforce these restrictions against user workarounds. Rumors swirl around potential trillion-dollar IPOs, with SpaceX being a frontrunner. Meanwhile, Instacart's dynamic pricing raises eyebrows, suggesting a move toward personalized pricing practices. The discussion highlights consumer privacy concerns and regulatory responses to this evolving market trend.
AI Snips
Chapters
Books
Transcript
Episode notes
Disney Sets A Hollywood AI Blueprint
- Disney's $1B OpenAI deal sets a licensing blueprint for Hollywood to control AI uses of its characters.
- The agreement pairs investment with strict limits on character voices, prompts, and certain outputs to preempt infringement.
AI Policing Will Be A Whack‑A‑Mole
- Enforcement will be a cat-and-mouse game as users probe model limits and companies close loopholes.
- Felix Hammond expects iterative fixes: exploits surface, platforms patch them, and the cycle repeats.
The 'Snoopy' Problem Limits Simple Blocks
- The 'Snoopy problem' means models can produce character-like outputs without naming them, complicating enforcement.
- Felix argues output-checking against licensed characters is feasible, but Emily says abstractions make detection hard.
