OpenAI announced Tuesday it will shut down its Sora AI video-generation app, marking a surprising retreat from the video creation market ahead of an expected initial public offering. “We’re saying goodbye to Sora,” the company wrote in a post on X. “We’ll share more soon, including timelines for the app and API and details on preserving your work.”
The closure comes as OpenAI faces intense pressure from rival Anthropic, whose Claude family of AI models has gained popularity among businesses and software engineers. Anthropic has focused computational resources on text and code generation rather than pursuing image and video capabilities like OpenAI.
OpenAI first unveiled Sora in 2024, generating concern in Hollywood about AI displacing human creators. The company launched a second-generation model in September with higher-quality videos, audio capabilities, and improved physics simulation. The standalone Sora app became the most-downloaded in the iOS App Store’s Photo and Video category within a day of its September release, with users creating videos of characters like Lara Croft, Mario, and Pikachu.
The shutdown affects OpenAI’s partnership with Disney, which announced a three-year deal and $1 billion investment in December to bring Disney characters to Sora’s platform. A Disney spokesperson said the company “respect[s] OpenAI’s decision to exit the video generation business and to shift its priorities elsewhere” and that the deal will not proceed.
According to The Wall Street Journal, OpenAI executives have said they are sharpening focus, recognizing the company cannot do “everything at once.” By reallocating computing resources from Sora to more lucrative coding and text-generation tasks, OpenAI can address chip supply constraints that forced limits on video generation. The company recently raised $110 billion in funding, reaching a $730 billion valuation.
